Choices
by YoGurlB
Summary: What happens when you can't make your own choices anymore?
1. Broken

_I don't own Twilight or the characters!_

_**Jacob's POV**_

My life was not about choices anymore. My right to choose what I wanted was nonexistent. I couldn't choose the path I wanted my life to take, I was even at risk of not choosing who to love.

Becoming a shape-shifter had put an end to the right to have choices. I was stuck in one place, not aging, not having anymore milestones. When you were a shape-shifter, you were under the command of the Alpha. What ever he told you to do, you had better follow it. It was impossible to ignore an Alpha command. Trying to ignore it was almost as painful as trying to hold in a cough that burns your chest. It was like trying to hold in tears that left that lump in your throat. It was impossible.

I always complained about not being able to make choices. The pack heard all of my vile thoughts. I always blamed the Cullens for taking away my choices and making my life the way it was. If Edward wasn't a vampire, Bella probably wouldn't have noticed him. He would have just been like every other human, his pale, stone like skin would not have stood out. I would have had the chance to be with Bella, she had known me longer anyway. It was the Cullens fault that I had phased in the first place. With them still lurking around, the wolf gene was in full force.

"Everyone gather around. I have some news," Sam called out. He sat in a recliner and we sat on the couch, that was not big enough for our huge bodies. " We have two more pack members."

"Nice, more guys means more fun," Embry said hi-fiving Paul,.

"They're not all guys actually." Sam glanced down at the floor, then back at us. He seemed uncomfortable with the situation, whatever the situation might be. He tapped his foot loudly and rubbed the back of his neck.

"So what is it then," I asked. Sam sucked his teeth, let out a sigh and quickly hopped to his feet.

"Leah. Leah's joined the pack," Sam whispered but loud enough for us all to hear.

"Leah? As in Leah Clearwater," Jared's eyebrows scrunched together as he questioned Sam.

"Leah Clearwater, the one with the nice ass," Paul asked.

Sam growled and then cleared his throat. " I forbid any sexual like behavior toward her and you all will respect her. Her and Seth are our new members."

" Wait, how did she phase? She's a girl. What did the council have to say about this," I asked.

" They said they don't know how it happened. I guess she had the gene and with the Cullens being here, that triggered it. Her and Seth are on their way over here now. I want you all to make them feel as comfortable as possible. Leah is not taking this all too well. Seth is just kind of confused but I think he'll be fine," Sam explained. As soon as he said that, I heard a car door shut. "I think that's them."

We all peeked out the window and sure enough Leah, Seth and Emily were walking towards the front door. Leah's face was frowned up and her body was tensed. Seth followed close behind her and Emily was leading them in.

Emily pecked Sam on the lips and Leah grimaced.

"Leah. Seth," Sam nodded towards them. "Come on in and sit down."

Seth sat on the floor next to my legs and Leah stood in front of the door. She crossed her arms and squinted her eyes. Sam didn't force her to sit but stood next to her as he spoke. Emily stood on the other side of Leah, rubbing her arm, trying to soothe her. The only thing Emily was doing was making Leah angrier. I could tell by the fire in her eyes and the squared line of her jaw.

Leah was known as the most beautiful girl in La Push. Every guy wanted to run their hands through her long, wavy hair and her over her soft curves. Her hair was now jaggedly cut and stopped just under her chin. She still had soft curves, but now she was toner. Her legs were muscular and longer. Her arms were sculpted and her breast-her breast even looked a little plumper.

" Welcome to the pack," Embry said breaking the awkward silence that had filled the room.

"Thanks," Seth replied fiddling with his small shirt. The growth spurt hit him hard like it did all of us. His shirts were now shorter and way tighter than they used to be.

"So um how does it feel to be a shape-shifter," Paul asked looking at Leah.

She rolled her eyes and pursed her lips. " Hmm I don't know. It's nice to be a furry creature and ripping my clothes a part."

Embry and Quil let out a horribly fake laugh. They were trying too hard to make Leah comfortable. Sam cut his eyes at them and their laughing abruptly stopped.

"I'm not being funny," Leah spat. I remember Leah being a sweet girl. She always had a smile on her face and was pretty pleasant to be around. That's when she was with Sam, about two years a go. "Would you fucking stop rubbing on my arm!"

Emily jumped back from Leah, her eyes widened at Leah's sudden outburst.

"Emily why don't you go to the room for now," Sam said, softly patting Emily on the back. She nodded and retreated to their bedroom.

"Leah you can have a sit, we're having a meeting," Sam said pointing towards an empty spot on the floor.

"I'm fine where I am," Leah snapped. She didn't even make eye contact with Sam. She focused on a piece of lint on her shirt instead.

"Oookay, well I will start." Sam moved to a spot in the middle of the floor. " Since we have new pack members that means new patrol shifts. Embry and Jared will continue to do their regular shift in the mornings until noon. Paul, you and Quil will still pick up right after Embry and Jared. Seth, I want you to patrol with me so you can get some experience. That leaves Jacob with Leah. Jacob, you and Leah will patrol at 3:00 pm until 6:00 pm. I will patrol with Seth after that. Is everything clear?"

Everyone nodded, except Leah. She shifted her weight to her other hip and glared at Sam's back. She was a complete bitch now, even if she had a reason to be.

Like I said, becoming a wolf meant you had to give up the right to make choices of your own. Sam could no longer stay with Leah because he imprinted on Emily, Leah's second cousin/best friend. Sam didn't have the choice to love Leah like he did Emily. Imprinting was rare, and I was hoping it skipped me. As much as I tried to force myself to imprint on Bella, I didn't like the idea of imprinting. Hearing Sam's constant thoughts of hurting Leah scared all of us. We were constantly stuck seeing Leah in Sam's thoughts. Her hurt expression when Sam dumped her and how she was soon after that. She no longer was sweet, smiley Leah Clearwater. Now she was bitter, cynical and cruel. The way she cut her eyes at everyone in the living room was clear proof that Leah Clearwater was going to be hell in the pack.

"Leah is everything clear," Sam asked turning to face her. She bit down on her lip and shook her head. I think I even heard and evil laugh escape her throat.

"Why the hell should I follow what you say," Leah asked Sam.

"Because I'm the Alpha and you have to follow my orders, unless you want me to use Alpha command on you," Sam explained.

"You don't want him to do that," Embry added.

"Says the guy with no father." Leah laughed to herself and moved a piece of hair from her face.

"Leah that was so uncalled for," Sam said.

I bit my tongue, trying to push the vile words I was thinking up back down my throat. I wasn't going to let her insult my best friend. Embry was about to open his mouth but closed it instead. He didn't want Sam to jump on him for saying something inappropriate.

" Let's not get on the subject of what's uncalled for Uley," Leah shot back. She leaned against the wall behind her and gazed at her surroundings. She looked at each of us, right in the eye. It was almost as if she was reading our minds or cursing us.

" Look Leah, we're a family. So that means you have to treat all of them as your brothers and that includes me," Sam said.

" Are you fucking kidding me? I will never think you as anything but an asshole. A coward. A liar, a cheat," Leah spoke slowly, every word coming at sharp.

"Lee-Lee-"

"You have no right to call me that," Leah replied through her teeth. Seth stood up and hurried to her side.

Sam sighed in defeat and turned back to us. " Jacob can you begin patrol with Leah? Make sure to show her everything she needs to do."

I stood up and made my way over to where Leah stood. "Come on Clearwater." I nodded my head towards the door.

Surprisingly she followed me, probably only to get away from Sam. She turned back towards the house and gave Seth a small smile. He looked back at her with fear in his eyes.

"First I have to show you how to phase," I said leading Leah into an opening.

"I already know how to do that."

"Not corr-" Leah phased right in front of me. Her shredded clothes slivered to the ground around us. " I hope you have some more clothes. I was trying to tell you to get undressed first." Leah growled. "Not in front of me Leah. I meant go behind a tree or something. Now I'm going to go get undressed and you wait here."

A minute later, I walked back into the clearing in wolf form.

"_Now I have to show you how to patrol. Please pay attention and listen well. I don't plan to go back over this more than once," I thought._

"_Just hurry up so I can go back home. I don't want to be a part of this shit anyway," Leah thought back._

"_Let me tell you something before we go any further. I'm not in the mood for your attitude Clearwater. Whatever happened between you, Sam and Emily is not my problem. What makes you think I want to be here with you? I would rather patrol by myself."_

"_Why don't you do that then? I can teach myself how to do it or how about I don't do it at all," Leah snapped. _

" _You have to do it if you're a part of this pack. Now watch and learn."_

"_Ugh!"_

"_What now," I asked getting frustrated. _

"_Nothing that concerns you, now hurry the hell up."_

_I sighed. " Why are you being such a bitch?"_

"_Excuse me? Why are you such an ass kisser?"_

"_Whose ass am I kissing?"_

"_Oh don't let me go there. Why are you kissing Sam's ass," Leah let out a wolfy laugh._

"_I'm only doing my job as a member of this pack. Shut the fuck up and listen will you?" I waited for a reply, but didn't get one. " You have to make sure you keep your nose close to the ground. You can pick up scents better the closer you are to the ground. Nose to the ground, eyes up. You have to make sure you're focused on what's in front of you, behind you, and on your sides."_

"_What the hell are we sniffing for? I know we're after vampires, but how am I supposed to know what they smell like?"_

_I laughed. "Trust me you'll know. The scent will burn your nose and almost make you queasy."_

"_Oh. Are we done," Leah asked impatiently. _

"_Nope. Now we actually have to patrol. That was just me teaching you. Make sure you stay by my side. Once you're more experienced, you'll go a separate way."_

Leah stayed close to my side and followed all my instructions. We patrolled in silence, until Leah began thinking about her past relationship with Sam.

~Flashback~

"_I was really worried about you when you were gone Sam. Where did you go anyway," Leah asked, her hands roaming back and forth over Sam's bare chest. _

" _I wish I could tell you Lee, but I can't," Sam replied. His voice was low, almost a growl._

" _Why are you keeping secrets from me," Leah asked sitting up. Sam stared at the ceiling with his hands rested behind his head. _

"_It's not like I want to, I just have to."_

"_I thought we could tell each other anything. You've been acting weird ever since you got back. What is it," Leah pressed._

"_I can't tell you Leah," Sam said, his voice a little firmer now. _

"_Why not."_

"_Because I can't," Sam yelled. He gently pushed Leah off of him and stood up. "I gotta go."_

"_Why do you keep running away from me," Leah asked, tears were forming in the corners of her eyes. _

"_I don't want to hurt you Leah, but you've got to understand that I can't explain what's going on. You have to trust me."_

"_How can I trust you when you're keeping secrets from me," Leah asked wiping her face. _

" _Please just trust me." Sam buckled his belt and walked toward the bedroom door. He leaned against it and sucked in a deep breath. " I love you more than anything."_

"_It surely doesn't feel like it," Leah replied holding the comforter closer to her bare body. _

_Sam glanced back at Leah. " I'm sorry I'm making you feel this way."_

"_Whatever."_

_Sam wiped a lone tear and shut Leah's door softly. _

~End of Flashback~

The rest of Leah's thoughts were just a jumbled mess. She thought about the last time Sam made love to her, the last kiss, the last hug, the last "I love you, and the last good-bye before he fell in love with Emily. She thought about the day he broke up with her, the first time she saw him and Emily kiss. She thought about the late nights she laid awake crying. The times where she didn't eat or drink anything. She thought about times she wanted to just disappear and be forgotten.

When Leah figured out I was still in her head, her thoughts abruptly stopped.

"_I didn't know all that happened," I thought._

Leah phased out and ran the opposite direction. I phased out and quickly put on my clothes. I finally caught up with Leah, she was back in the clearing where we started out. She was sitting in the middle of the treeless spot, with her knees pulled up to her chest. I took off my shirt as I walked towards her.

"I don't like people in my head," Leah spoke quietly. I laid my shirt on her shoulders and looked away as she put it on.

"You have to get used to it. You'll always have someone in your head if you're phased. Trust me, I don't like it either," I replied.

" I can't believe any of this is real. I remember I used to hear stories of vampires when I was a kid. My dad used to tell me about the wolves. I had nightmares about the vampires, they always freaked me out. Now I have to face them, kill them and act as though that's normal. All the things I never thought existed, actually exist. What the hell is wrong with the world," Leah said. She slowly turned her head to look at me.

"I don't know what's wrong with it. I mean, I guess I see where you're coming from."

"What happened to choices? I didn't ask to become this monster. This took away my happiness and left me choiceless. Sam explained the whole imprinting thing to me. It only made me angrier about the situation. I get that he didn't have a choice, it hurts him to be away from her. But why couldn't he tell me the truth, he did have a choice to do that. This is one fucked up world we live in," Leah looked up at the sky.

" He didn't mean to do it. He hates that he hurt you."

" Yea sure. Sam's happy and doesn't give two flying fucks about how I feel." Leah stood and brushed her self off. "Are we done here?"

"Yea I guess. I'll patrol the rest of the perimeter by myself," I replied.

Leah nodded. " Thanks for helping me learn this crap." Leah threw her hand up and rolled her eyes.

" Yep. Whatever."

" You know I'm going to make Sam's life hell since we're in each other's heads right?"

" Yep," I said once again.

**This idea came to me while I was in Criminology class. What a wonderful place for new ideas to emerge? **

**It is just my way of giving the wolves their spotlight, since S. Meyer didn't really touch base on the wolves. I always wondered how it was when Leah joined the pack. Too bad we didn't get to see that. **

**I feel that the whole imprinting thing was a little bogus in Twilight. I still don't understand how imprinting is so rare, yet many of the pack members imprinted. How is that rare? I won't go on an angry rant because it would be too long. lol**

**Thanks for reading! I plan to have a new chapter of Blurred Instincts up soon!**


	2. Always

**Leah's POV**

**I don't own Twilight or the song. Twilight belongs to S. Meyer and the song belongs to Bon Jovi. **

_**It's been raining since you left me**_

_**Now I'm drowning in the flood…**_

_One. Two. Three. Four. _Dammit, why couldn't I phase back? I had been trying to phase back into my human form for ten minutes now. Jacob said that it was all about calming myself down first and then it would naturally happen. That lying son of a bitch! I was as calm as I could be and my wolf body wasn't budging. I knew it was a bad idea to sneak out at this time of the night when no one else was phased. Although I enjoyed the quietness in my head, I needed someone here to help me.

_"Lee?"_

Fuck.

_"Why are you out here alone? It isn't your shift." Sam appeared from behind a tree."Leah?"_

_"What?!" I turned to walk away but Sam caught up with me and stopped me dead in my tracks. _

_"Your mom called me wondering where you were. You always sneak out at this time?" Sam towered over me. _

_"That's none of your business." _

_"We can't keep doing this." Sam said._

_"What are you talking about? I don't have the time to sit and have a bonding moment, I'm going home." Sam blocked me in. "Move!"_

_"We need to talk."_

_"We don't need to do anything. I need to get home. Now move before I make you," I snapped. _

_Sam chuckled in his head. "I would love to see that." _

_"Move the hell outta my way." I pushed Sam away with my nose and he moved to the side. _

_One. Two. Three. Four. _Hush puppies. Cotton candy. Stuffed- Finally! I snatched my clothes from my ankle and quickly put them on before Sam Uley came running to my rescue. Why did my mother call him of all people?

"Leah!" There was a pull in my chest that kept me from continuing my journey home. _Alpha command. _I whipped my head around and glared at the man who broke my heart into pieces.

"What the fuck do you want from me Sam!?" Placing my hands on my hips, I gave him the best Clearwater glare that I could. I tapped my foot waiting on an answer that I was sure I wasn't going to get.

"To talk to you. You've been avoiding me ever since you phased," Sam replied. Did he think me phasing was going to make me nicer towards him? Better yet, forgive him? This whole wolf thing just made me hate him more because he lied to me. He lied to me about what he was and the real reason he left me for my cousin.

"There's a reason I'm avoiding you," I spat before turning on my heel. Sam followed quickly behind me. "You gonna follow me all the way home?"

"Yes, until you talk to me. Dammit Leah, stop!" Sam grabbed my arm and pulled me towards him.

"Get your hand off of me!" I tried to yank my arm from his grip but he had a tight hold on me this time. "You have three minutes Uley."

Sam smirked and loosened his grip on my arm but he didn't let go. "I'm sorry."

I scoffed. "Is that all you wanted to say to me?"

"Lee-Lee-"

"Don't call me that! Look if all you're going to do is apologize to me, I don't want to hear it," I said through clenched teeth. Sam's expression hardened and he let go of my arm. "Are you done?"

"Why are you doing this?" Sam sounded defeated, the same way he sounded the night he broke up with me. "This isn't you Leah."

"The old Leah died Sam. She died the night you left me." I snatched my arm from his hand and turned to walk away. This time Sam Uley didn't run after me.

I ran home in my human form so I didn't risk someone invading my thoughts again. I wasn't ready to spend every day with Sam in my head hearing every thought. Some things I had a hard time not thinking about and I knew that it bothered the pack, especially Sam. My every intention was to torture him and force him to see what he did to me. My grandmother always taught me it wasn't good to be bitter. She said that being bitter didn't hurt anyone but you. But I couldn't help it. I had to get back at him somehow and if it meant making my thoughts a living hell, so be it. I ran up the porch steps to find my mother waiting in the door.

"You have to stop running off like this Leah," she whispered through the screen door. "I'm worried about you."

"I'm fine," I replied curtly. I opened the screen door and pushed past her.

"Leah."

"I'm fine mom." She placed her hand on my shoulder.

"No you're not. I'm not fine Lee. I hate seeing my baby girl like this," she said. I could tell she was about to cry when her voice broke. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her into me. Right now I had to be the strong one for my family. After all, it was my fault that my dad was no longer with us. I had taken him away from my family so I had to deal with the consequences. I still had nightmares about the day I phased. The look on my father's face still haunted me a week later.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered in my mother's hair. I had grown so much this past month. I was probably about 5'10 now and I had a bad feeling I wasn't done growing. "I'm so sorry I took him away from you." I stifled a sob that threatened to escape my throat.

"Don't you dare blame this on yourself. This isn't your fault Leah." My mother pulled away from me and put her hands on my face. "You understand me? This isn't your fault honey."

"Yes it is. I killed him mom," I cried. Warm tears ran down my cheeks.

"Stop it. Look at me." She held my face in her hands, forcing me to look at her. "Stop blaming yourself for all of this. No one thinks this is your fault. Leah look at me." She pulled my face back to her gaze when I tried to pull away.

"How can you say that? You saw what I did to him. You saw the look on his face mom. He was so disappointed. I don't care what you or Seth thinks, I know this is my fault. I did this to us." I ripped my face from her embrace and ran up the steps to my room.

"Leah," My mother called out. I slammed my door shut when I heard her making her way up the steps. I could hear her pause outside the door before turning the knob.

"Mom I don't want to talk right now," I snapped.

"You can't hold all of this anger in baby. It's not good for you," she replied, sitting next to me on my bed. "Your father wasn't disappointed in you and neither am I. Why do you think this is your fault?"

I wiped my hands down my face. "Because I phased and scared him. He was shocked."

"He had a weak heart but I don't want you blaming yourself. Stop it, okay?" My mother rubbed my cheek.

"I killed my baby too," I whisper, lowering my face into my hands.

My mother sighed. "No you didn't. You were very stressed Leah and that didn't help."

"This monster that I've become killed it." I shook my head.

"Have you told Sam," my mother asked, rubbing my hair.

I quickly pulled my head out of my hands. "No, and I don't plan on telling him about it either."

"He has a right to know. It was his child too Lee."

"He doesn't have a right to know anything!" Two weeks after Sam had dumped me, I found out I was pregnant. I pondered over whether I should tell Sam about the pregnancy because after all he was the father. I decided that he had no right to know and I planned on moving away from La Push after graduation. My plan backfired on me when I started getting really ill. I was running a high fever and I could barely get out of bed. My mother just assumed it was the pregnancy that was making me sick because she was really ill when she was pregnant with Seth. A week later, I phased in the kitchen when Seth ate the last of my Lucky Charms. Who knew something so petty would cause the death of my father and my unborn child? After I finally phased back into my human form, my stomach began to cramp badly and that's when I knew my baby was gone. Now, I'm a genetic dead end. I can't even reproduce a child anymore because of the monster that lived inside me. Until this day, no one in the pack knows about my miscarriage, not even Seth. I wasn't happy that I had gotten pregnant in the first place, but I knew that I had to take responsibility for my mistake. My mother and father always asked me if Sam and I were using protection and I always said yes. There were only few times that we didn't use anything and one of those times resulted in me getting knocked up. My mother wanted to talk to the Council about me having children in the future, but I had stopped her the few times she tried. I didn't want anyone to ever know about the baby, I was still struggling to push the thought out of my own mind. I had to be extra careful with my thoughts on patrol since I figured out people could see what went on in my head.

"What's there to lose, just tell him," my mother pushed.

"No mom. It's not like that would change anything. He'll still be with Emily," I replied.

My mother nodded and rubbed my hair one more time before getting up to leave my room. She stopped at the threshold of my door and turned to face me.

"I love you Leah, don't you ever forget that." She smiled and shut my door.

I laid back on my pillows and pulled my comforter up to my chin. I pulled the sonogram picture from under my pillow and ran my finger across its glossy texture. I didn't have any parts of Sam anymore. He was completely gone. I placed the picture back under my pillow and cried myself to sleep.

_**You see I've always been a fighter**_

_**But without you I give up…**_

**So there is the second chapter of Choices! I know this chapter was kind of boring, but I wanted to develop Leah's character a little more before jumping into the story. I know I said I wanted to get a few chapters done before posting, but I couldn't just let this sit on my computer. It was screaming POST MEEEEE! lol I'm going to outline the rest of the story because I will run out of ideas if I don't plan this thing out. **

**This story will follow some of the events that happened in Twilight, but I will be adding a few of my own. For instance, Leah phased a little sooner in this story than she did in New Moon. I haven't read the books in forever so don't go crazy if some things aren't the same. For the most part, certain events will stay the same but I will be putting a twist on them. This story will contain vampires, so you will be seeing them pretty soon. At this point in the story, Edward is still gone. You all will meet Bella in the next chapter, aren't you excited! **

**Until next chapter...**

**Love,**

**Bri**


	3. Sad

**Leah's POV **

_**Man, it's been a long day.**_

_**Stuck thinking about it driving on the freeway…**_

My bed wasn't comfortable like it used to be before I phased, or at least that was what I told myself. I spent my nights tossing and turning and waking up with my sheets soaked from sweat. I felt like I was suffocating in my own space. And I meant suffocating physically and mentally. Not only did my room feel like an oven, it also held so many memories that I wished I could forget. Sam spent nights here in my bed. Why would I want to remember that?

I turned over and looked at my alarm clock. _5:37. _I fell back to my pillow. Damn, this pillow was too hot. I turned it over to the other side and sighed as my face touched the cool cloth. How could I fall asleep now? I tried counting sheep, listening to music, reading a book and simply closing my eyes hoping sleep would come over me. I kicked my comforter to the floor in frustration. A wolf call interrupted my attempt to fall asleep again. I rushed to the window to find Jacob Black throwing rocks toward my room.

"What the hell are you doing Black," I asked in a loud whisper. "If you break my window, I will break your face."

"You aren't breaking anything. Get up we have to patrol," Jacob replied.

"What? My patrol shift isn't until 3pm, come back later. Bye," I said, shutting my window. I wasn't about to patrol in the wee hours of the morning. It was bad enough I couldn't get any sleep but my body was too tired to patrol. Jacob continued to throw rocks at my window. I ripped the window open for the second time and threw a book, attempting to hit Jacob in the head. He ducked out of the way just in time.

"Get your ass down here. Alpha's orders," Jacob yelled.

"Would you quiet down, some people do sleep ya know. And fuck what Sam ordered."

Jacob sighed and rolled his eyes. "I will come up there and drag you out."

"I'll be out in five minutes," I groaned. I slammed the window shut causing the wall to rattle slightly. This whole wolf thing was a pain in my ass already. It sent me through a terrible growth spurt and not to mention my boobs had gotten bigger. It's really a bitch when you constantly have to take off a bra in order to phase. I had thought about running around shirtless like the guys but I figured that wouldn't be a good idea. I found the biggest bra that was in my drawer and put it on. The wire cut into my skin and my boobs were flowing out of the top. I threw on a t-shirt and sweats and climbed out of my window.

"Why doesn't Seth have to come," I asked once my feet touched the ground.

"Because Sam wants him to focus on his schooling until he graduates. You sure do ask a lot of questions." Jacob began unbuttoning his khaki shorts.

"Why the fuck are we patrolling right now," I pressed.

"Look there is a vampire on the loose. We don't know why she keeps coming back but we need to figure that out before she starts killing people. Does that answer all your questions? Good because I'm not answering anymore," Jacob replied, pinching the bridge of his nose. I loved getting under his skin, he was so easy to frustrate. "Stop smirking at me and let's go."

I went behind a bush to get out of my clothes. Jacob was waiting for me in his wolf form.

"_Is it only us," I asked, lowering my nose to the ground. _

"_Nope, the gang's all here," Quil piped in. _

"_Oh great," I groaned. I ran past Jacob, keeping my nose to the ground to sniff out any irregular scents. _

"_Fuck Leah, wait up." Jacob barked. _

"_No you better catch up; I'm trying to get back to bed!" _

_Sam phased into our thoughts. "Take your time; we have to make sure we patrol everything carefully._"

"Ugh!"

"_All you do is complain. It's not our fault you're PMSing, oh wait you don't have that problem anymore," Paul spat. _

"_Fuck off bastard," I snapped back. _

"_Both you stop," Sam commanded. _

"_She's so annoying," Paul added in before Sam growled. _

"_No one wants to know about Leah's nonexistent period Paul. Thanks for putting that image in our heads." Embry shuddered as a thought of a tampon crossed his mind. _

"_Oh come on now," Jacob added. _

"_All of you are a bunch of perverts," I yelled. _

"_Well you're invading our space. It was only the guys until you popped up," Quil shot at me. _

"_It's not my fault Jacob's little girlfriend kept those damn leeches here," I barked. _

_Jacob growled. "Don't bring Bella into this Leah!"_

"_Well she is at fault for me phasing. The Cullens wouldn't have stayed so long if she wasn't fucking Edward."_

"_They're not even here anymore! You happy? The world doesn't revolve around you Clearwater, get that through your thick head," Jacob yelled. The Cullens had disappeared a few weeks ago, leaving their precious Bella behind. I had phased a week before they decided to run off to who knows where. I was glad they were gone but Bella had been hanging out with Jacob, resulting in every one of Jacob's thoughts being about her. I remember hanging out with her a few times when we were kids but we were never best friends. Bella was…different. She wasn't like most teen girls. She was socially awkward-I mean who hangs with vampires- and she was always sulking. Ever since Edward and his popsicle family left, Bella had been moping around Forks and La Push with Jacob. _

_Jacob interrupted my thoughts."Funny how you talk about someone moping when you're still pining after someone who doesn't want you." _

"_Jacob," Sam warned. _

_I stopped in my path and turned around to face the russet wolf. My lips curled back over my teeth as I crouched down, ready to pounce on Jacob Black if he uttered another word. _

"_Leah you may not want to try that," Jared urged. _

"_You stay out of this! Listen Black, I don't want to hear another word out of you."_

"_I hope you don't think you threaten me Clearwater because you don't. I guess you keep forgetting that we can hear your thoughts. All you do is complain about being a wolf, think about how Sam left you, complain about this, and complain about that. You act like we actually want you here. The pack was fine before your ass phased and now you want to poison our thoughts with constant thoughts about Sam? It doesn't work that way she-wolf. At least Bella shows some interest in me while Sam is ignoring your dumb-"_

_I charged at Jacob causing us to tumble down the hill. I snapped at his neck, failing to even get a good grip before he pushed me off of him._

"_Jacob! Leah!" Sam yelled, blocking me from the russet wolf. "Stop!" Sam yelled again as I tried get around him. "That was so uncalled for Jacob."_

"_She started it! You heard her talking about Bella," Jacob whined. Cry me a fucking river. _

"_Leah would you stop annoying your pack brothers? Stop pushing buttons to set people off," Sam said. _

"_Thank you! You're driving us crazy woman," Paul chimed in. _

"_Shut up!" I pushed past Sam. _

"_Can we just all get along," Embry asked. _

"_No! Not with a woman in this pack. Women have issues," Quil added. _

"_I've had it with this bullshit." I ran in the opposite direction. I had to get away from them before I snapped on someone. _

"_Leah," Sam called out. _

I rushed to the nearest bush and phased out and quickly threw on my clothes. I ran towards the cliffs hoping no one was following me. Sam would probably send someone after me anyway because he knew I didn't want him of all people coming to my rescue. The wind was beginning to pick up as I took my usual seat on the rocks. I had been coming here clearing my mind for the past few weeks since I phased. It was something about watching the water crash against the rocks that relaxed me. The cliffs were so peaceful and beautiful.

"Leah?" I could hear heavy footsteps behind me. Sam's woodsy scent filled my nose as he got closer.

"What," I snapped, refusing to make eye contact with him.

"You gotta stop running off like this. It isn't safe with this vampire running around." Sam sat down next to me. "What's going on with you?"

Cutting my eyes at him, I tried to think up some smart remark to throw at him. What irritated me the most about Sam was his ability to treat me like nothing ever happened. It was like we never had a relationship and we were just friends instead of exes. His nonchalant attitude bugged the hell out of me.

Sam's placed his hand on my back, interrupting me from my inner rant. "Talk to me."

"We have nothing to talk about Uley." I kept my eyes focused on the waves beneath me.

"Lee…"

"Why couldn't you send someone else after me? You know I'm not going to talk to you right?"

Sam sighed in defeat. "I just wish you would talk to me, yell at me, hit me. Just do something."

"Go back to your perfect little girlfriend Sam. We have nothing to talk about," I spat. I picked at an invisible piece of lint on my shirt. I couldn't even look at the man that I called myself loving at one time. Well truth be told, I still love him, that's why this hurts so much. Getting over Sam almost seemed impossible because we spent so much time in each other's heads. I saw all his thoughts about Emily, none of them were about me. The imprint forced him to get over me so fast but I was stuck with every memory we shared. I wish it was so easy for me to forget too. I wanted to wipe every memory of Samuel Uley from my mind, but I knew I couldn't.

Sam looked out at the water. "We're all meeting at my house. We need to handle some back business. Be there in 15 minutes." I sighed loudly. "And that's an order Leah." Sam hopped to his feet and disappeared into the trees. Stupid Alpha command.

Fifteen minutes later I was sitting in Sam and Emily's living room between Jacob and Embry. The living room was clearly too small for us. Sam talked quietly because Emily was still asleep in their bedroom. "The red head has been here again." Sam began as he sat in the recliner across from me.

"We chased her up to the Canandian border. I don't get why she keeps coming back, she's obviously after something," Jacob added. His elbow kept poking me in my side.

"Or someone," Paul chimed in. "She is obviously looking for someone or she wouldn't keep popping up. We need to get to the bottom of this before she starts killing people."

"Well what do we do," Embry asked, looking around the room for possible answers.

"Keep patrolling. We'll just have to extend our patrol times until we find out what's going on," Sam replied.

"What do you think she's after and are there more," Quil asked.

"She's probably about to start hunting or something," Paul suggested.

"Patrols will be extended another two hours. We have to protect our people," Sam explained.

"So we're going to be patrolling for hours on end now," I asked, pulling my legs to my chest. I bumped Jacob in the process and he elbowed me in the side.

"Yep. And that means everyone." Sam glanced in my direction. "Everyone in this pack has a duty to protect the people of La Push. No slacking off or running off." Sam glanced in my direction again. "Make sure you focus on patrol so you don't miss any scents. Watch each other's backs. Seth won't be patrolling extra hours since he has school, but when he is on summer break he will join us for the extra shifts."

"So the kid gets to stay at home and play video games while we bust our asses," Paul hissed, glaring at me in the process of his mini rant. "That's some bullshit."

"He has school, which he will finish before he commits to this pack fully."

"But we're up at all hours of the morning while he's home sleeping," Paul added, throwing his hands in the air.

"What I say goes Paul. No ifs, ands, or buts about it," Sam commanded. Paul sunk down into the couch under the Alpha command.

"What my brother does is none of your business anyway," I said.

"Shut up," Paul spat, crossing his arms across his chest. He was pissed, as usual.

I heard a door creak upstairs. Damn Emily was awake. I bet she was going to come down here and cook breakfast like a good little housewife.

"Oh sorry Em, did we wake you," Sam asked rushing to her side as she hit the last step.

"No, I was on my way down anyway. Want some breakfast guys," Emily asked sweetly. "I don't even know why I asked that question. Of course you do." Emily smiled widely as Sam kissed her scarred cheek.

"I'm not hungry," I said.

"Oh you know you're starving. You just want to be a bitch and not eat Emily's cooking," Paul replied. Paul was asking for an ass kicking today. Fucking idiot.

"I'm just not hungry," I snapped.

"Bitch," Paul mumbled under his breath.

I dropped my legs and sat forward on the couch. "Call me a bitch one more time and I will rip your balls out and feed them to you for breakfast."

"Could you two not argue for five minutes? Damn," Quil groaned.

"Tell Leah to stop being a bitch then." Paul ruffled my hair on his way to the kitchen.

"Hey Lee, wanna help me cook breakfast? We can catch up on some stuff," Emily asked, snaking her arms around Sam's waist. Was she trying to be funny?

I clenched my fist, almost drawing blood from my palm. "You can't be serious."

Emily's face fell and Sam pulled her in closer. "Leah-"

"Is this some kind of way to rub this in my face?" I motioned towards the happy little couple in front of me.

"Of course not," Emily shook her head. "I just thought we could talk since we haven't done that in a while."

"And I wonder why," I snapped.

"I can help you cook Emily," Jared offered and threw a glare my way.

"Thanks Jared. I just needed someone to keep me company," Emily smiled. Was she always so annoying?

"You could at least try to be a little nicer to her," Embry whispered in my ear.

"She wasn't nice to me when she stole my boyfriend," I scoffed.

"Would you get over that already?" Paul was walking back into the living room with a handful of cookies.

"Hey are there any more of those left," Quil asked pointing to Paul's hand of cookies.

"You better hurry up and get some. Jared is killing them," Paul replied. Quil and Embry took off running towards the kitchen, almost knocking each other over in the process. Greedy bastards.

"You're hurting her you know," Jacob said. "She's trying."

"How do you think I feel?"

"They can't help that they were made for each other," Paul added. "You need to stop being so damn bitter."

"Put yourself in my shoes! All of you sit here and tell me I need to stop being so bitter but none of you know how I feel!"

Sam appeared in the doorway of the living room. "Leah-"

"Fuck you Sam! Fuck Emily! And fuck this fucking pack shit! I can't take it anymore." My body began to shake.

"Oh shit, get her out of here," Sam yelled walking towards me.

"Don't you lay a finger on me!" The shaking got worse.

"Leah get outside now," Sam commanded. Jacob was by my side within seconds and escorted me to the door. When I got outside I phased on the spot, shredding my clothes to pieces. I could see Jacob taking his shorts off and throwing them to the side as I ran towards the trees.

"_Slow down," Jacob yelled. _

"_Sam send you after me," I asked pushing myself forward. _

"_No I actually came after you voluntarily." _

_I stopped dead in my tracks. "Shit."_

"_Stay where you are Leah don't move!" Jacob howled. A red head vampire stood in front of me…_

_**And I confess**_

_**That I'm holding on by a thin, thin thread…**_

**I know you guys are dreading that Bella Swan wasn't in this chapter. Okay maybe not dreading but looking for her. After I began writing I couldn't really fit her in this chapter, so she will make an appearance in the next chapter. **

**I kind of felt like I didn't make myself clear about the timeline of the story last chapter. The second chapter takes place a few weeks after Leah first phased (the first chapter). The Cullens left a week after Leah phased. Hope that clears things up. Thanks for reading and reviewing! **

**Love, **

**Bri**


	4. The Gospel

**I don't own Twilight or the characters! S. Meyer owns it all, except the new characters that will be introduced in this chapter. I don't own the song lyrics either! The lovely Delilah owns the lyrics used in this chapter. If you don't know who she is, go check her out on Youtube. She's amazing! **

_**Until you ask yourself**__**  
**__**Why you never felt this way before, **__**  
**__**You're trying hard to wait**__**  
**__**When you know it's so long, **__**  
**__**So much more…**_

**Leah's POV**

"_You seriously think that I'm going to wait for you to get here? This crazy bitch is standing right in front of me, licking her lips like I'm her next meal," I shouted. The red head vampire wrinkled her nose as she lunged toward nme. I quickly ducked out of the way and caught her by the ankle. "Yeah bitch take that!" She yanked my tail and launched me forward. I crashed into a tree and hit the ground with a thud. _

"_Leah," Sam yelled._

_I felt thick, warm liquid ooze from my head. Blood. The ugly vampire hissed and took off through the trees. I hopped to my feet, staggering with each step I took._

"_Maybe you should wait here. Embry stay with her," Sam suggested._

"_No! I'm going to kill that leech! She's heading north," I yelled, picking up my speed. My vision was beginning to blur but I pushed myself further through the trees. _

"_She keeps switching her direction, stay on guard," Sam commanded. He was running by my side and Jacob had taken his place on my other. "You okay Lee?"_

"_I'm fine and please use my full name Uley," I spat. _

"_Damn leech!" Paul snapped as the red head leaped from his reach. "She's a fast motherfucker."_

"_I think I've got her," Embry called out. He lunged forward but the leech slid from his grasp. We were headed toward the Canadian border now and the leech was pulling further away from us. _

"_I can't see her anymore," Quil said stopping his tracks, causing Embry to slide into his rear end. _

"_Dang Quil a warning would have been nice." Embry shook out his fur. My vision was fading again and my legs were getting weaker. _

"_She's gone. Dammit!" Sam hit the ground with his paw and turned to face me. "Someone needs to help Leah back to Emily's. She should be healed by time we get there." _

"_I have legs, I can walk," I snapped as Jacob threw me on his back with his snout. How fucking stupid did this look? _

"_You can barely see. Stop being so stubborn for once will ya," Jacob replied. _

Five minutes later I was back at my favorite person's house. Sam had asked her to wrap my head up to stop the bleeding before it healed.

"How are you feeling," Emily asked, laying a cool towel on my forehead.

"I'm fine; it's probably healed by now anyway." I threw the towel to the side and sat up on the couch.

"You shouldn't have gone after her. Why didn't you just wait until I got there," Jacob yelled. He was pacing back and forth in front of me.

"You were taking too long, I took the bitch myself," I spat.

"Yea and almost got yourself killed. If you're going to be a member of this pack, you will follow orders," Sam said, taking a seat in his recliner. Emily made her way back into the living room with a bowl of soup.

"Here you go Lee," she sat the bowl on the coffee table and plopped down next to me. Did she honestly think getting the shit knocked out of me would make me nicer? I was hungry but I didn't want to make her day by eating her infamous tomato soup. Ugh, why did she have to be such a Perfect Patty?

"I would have killed her eventually," I mumbled.

"Why are you so fucking stubborn Leah? The world doesn't revolve around you. We're a pack, we work together," Jacob replied.

"You won't sit here and ridicule me like a child Black! I had to do what I had to do okay. Either she was going to take a bite out of my ass, or I was going to kill her first. You would have done the same thing!"

"Yea but I can protect myself." Jacob finally stopped pacing and sat on the couch across from me.

"Oh and I can't? Why, because I'm a woman," I asked.

"That's not what he said," Quil added .

"That's what he's implying." I wasn't stupid, being in a pack full of men meant I was the weak link. I wasn't able to protect myself because I was a woman. That's what they thought at least.

Sam shook his head and sighed. "Just don't put yourself in dangerous situations okay? We can't risk losing someone," Sam said with soft eyes. Why was he treating me like I was some fragile child? It was something about his condescending tone that was making my head hurt worse.

"Why do you care Uley," I snapped before taking my bowl of soup and heading towards the kitchen. I could hear Emily get off the couch and move closer to Sam. Stupid wolf hearing.

"She's getting worse," Emily whispered.

"She'll be okay Em. Don't worry yourself," Sam whispered. I rolled my eyes and scooped a huge spoon full of soup into my mouth.

"She's just a bitch," Paul spat.

"Paul," Sam warned. I stomped back into the living room, with the bowl of soup in my hand.

"What was that," I asked, a smirk growing across my face.

"I said-"

Before Paul could finish his sentence, I chucked the hot bowl of soup at his head.

"What the fuck Leah!" Paul yelped.

"Now who's going to clean this up," Jared asked, staring at the broken bowl and red liquid on the floor.

"I'm going to kill you Clearwater," Paul yelled. He ran towards me, forcing me against the wall.

"Oh I'm sure Sam wouldn't let that happen. Now would you." I glanced at Sam, who was glaring at Paul's back.

"Would you two stop it?" Jacob rolled his eyes and let out a loud sigh. Paul finally let go of my shoulders and stomped out of the living room. "Why do you push his buttons?"

"Because he pushes mine," I replied.

"It's called sexual tension, they should just fuck and get it over with," Jared added, earning a growl from Sam.

"But seriously Leah clean this up," Embry asked.

"I'm sure Sam's little housewife will figure it out. I'm going home to get some kind of sleep," I made my way towards the door.

"No you're going to clean this up, you did it," Jared said. Nope, I slammed the door behind me and heard a frustrated growl. Emily was probably cleaning it up as soon as I shut the door. I could hear glass clinging around. Yep, she was cleaning it up.

"Early patrol huh," my mom asked as I walked through the front door.

"Yeah sadly. Seth leave for school already?"

"Yep, of course he is pissed that he couldn't help with patrolling. I think he just wants to miss school." My mother chuckled and shook her head. "What the hell happened to your head?"

"I got into a fight with Paul," I lied. I didn't want to tell her a vampire kicked my ass, she would freak out.

"I will have to have a talk with him tonight at the bonfire. No one will lay a finger on my baby and get away with it," my mother kissed my forehead.

"Oh come on mom, I handled him. 'Your baby' can take care of herself, but thank you. Why are we having a bonfire tonight," I asked, pouring myself a bowl of cereal.

"To welcome the new pack members. Well you and Seth. Plus we haven't had one since your dad died." Her voice dropped when she mentioned my father's death.

"You hungry mom? I can fix you some breakfast," I asked.

"Aww thanks babygirl but I can get it. I've been trying to keep myself busy ya know?" She winked at me and eyed my bowl of cereal. "Gosh this whole wolf thing is costing me a fortune. You and Seth are eating me out of house and home."

"Sorry," I said stuffing my mouth with cereal.

"I would say I understand, but I don't." She laughed again before disappearing to her room. She was having the hardest time holding herself together even though she tried to pretend she was fine. She didn't think I could hear her crying in the wee hours of the morning. She hadn't made banana nut bread since my father passed because it was his favorite. She only wore her hair down because my father loved when she put it in a bun. It was the little things that I noticed she didn't do anymore. I just wished there was something I could do to bring him back, to take all of her pain away.

**At Billy's House **

"Rachel?"

"Lee! Oh my gosh I haven't seen you in forever. I've missed you so much," Rachel ran and jumped into my arms. "We have so much to catch up on. What the hell happened with you and Sam," Rachel asked, pulling away from me. "I heard he was slopping spit with your cousin Emily."

"Yea, it's a long story. What are you doing here," I asked, straightening out my shirt.

"We'll talk about it later." Rachel winked as Jacob walked into the kitchen. "I'm just here to visit for a few weeks. You going to the bonfire" Rachel asked loading cans of soda into a laundry basket.

"Sadly. You," I asked. Rachel didn't know about us did she?

"No my dad said he wanted someone to stay here to house sit, plus I have some work to do for my online classes. You don't sound too excited about it."

"I hope you don't throw anything at Paul tonight. He wants to kick your ass for earlier," Jacob interrupted.

"Paul isn't going to do anything to me," I replied, helping Rachel load more drinks.

"I heard my name." Paul stepped in the kitchen, pausing once he made eye contact with Rachel. "Uhhh."

"Oh hell no, that's my sister Lahote," Jacob yelled.

"Is there a reason why you're staring at me like that," Rachel asked, hiding behind me.

"I'm Paul," Paul said, smiling sweetly.

"You take another step towards her and I'll break your arm," Jacob warned. "Rachel go out back and grab some more drinks."

"There's enough in here already," Rachel protested, still staring at Paul like he was some kind of monster. Well he was a monster if you wanted to be honest.

"Rachel go. Leah go with her while I tear Paul's head off," Jacob said through clenched teeth.

"Oh no I want to see this." I crossed my arms across my chest and leaned against the counter.

Jacob huffed. "You will undo it. You're not going to do this with my sister."

"It's not like I did it on purpose. Cool it," Paul replied, stepping closer to Jacob.

"Jacob, Paul," Billy called out from the living room. "Rachel why don't you come to the bonfire so you know what's going on." Billy wheeled himself into the living room.

"No! He will undo it," Jacob yelled.

"I can't undo an imprint," Paul yelled back.

"What the fuck are you talking about? Is he a duck or something. Imprint?" Rachel put the last few cans of pop in the basket.

"You'll understand after the bonfire Rach," Billy explained.

"What's going on," Sam asked as he walked into the kitchen.

"Paul imprinted on Rachel," Jacob said, wiping his hand across his face.

"What does imprint mean," Rachel asked getting frustrated.

"You'll understand more at the bonfire," Billy said for the second time. I was staying out of this one because Rachel was going to flip out when she found out what this all meant. No more freedom for you honey.

"No someone is going to tell me what's going on," Rachel said, hitting the counter.

"What's going on," Embry asked walking into the kitchen followed by Seth, Jared, and Quil.

"I imprinted on Rachel," Paul explained.

"Holy fuck," Embry gasped.

"Jacob's going to kill you man," Seth added.

"Damn Paul you keep stealing all the hotties," Quil chimed in.

"That's my sister you're talking about," Jacob growled.

"What the fucking hell does imprint mean!" Rachel yelled and the room fell silent.

"You'll understand after the bonfire," Billy broke the silence. Rachel glared at her father and sighed in frustration.

**At the Bonfire**

I was right, Rachel totally freaked out when Billy told her the legends were true. She couldn't believe that we could phase into giant wolves until Embry phased to prove we weren't lying. She couldn't even look Paul in the face and refused to sit by him. Surprisingly she sat next to me even though I was what she called 'a monster' too.

"I can't believe this shit," Rachel said shaking her head in disbelief. "The legends were really true. What kind of wacky world do we live in?"

I could see Jacob making his way towards us with Bella Swan by his side. Why on earth did he bring her along?

"Hey Bella. It's so good to see you," Emily hugged Bella tightly.

"I thought this bonfire was only for the tribe," I asked, glaring at Jacob. He knew she didn't belong here.

"Shut up Leah," Jacob mumbled. Bella looked so uncomfortable, even with her best friend Jacob by her side.

"It's good to have you here Bella," Billy said. _No it's not. _

Bella smiled and hung her head. Jacob bumped her with his elbow and she smiled weakly.

Billy went on to welcome me and Seth to the pack and he reminisced about times with my dad. Old Quil wrapped a comforting arm around my mother as tears began to slide down her cheeks. Rachel rubbed my back as I tried to hold my tears in.

About twenty minutes later, everyone was laughing and socializing around the fire.

"So this imprinting thing is what tore you and Sam a part," Rachel asked, roasting a marshmallow.

"Yep."

"I swear I would kick Emily's ass for that. My dad said that the imprintee can choose what they want. Your cousin is so wrong."

"So what do you choose," I asked trying to change the subject.

"Hmm, I don't know yet. I'm just trying to swallow all of this, it's unreal," Rachel replied.

"Hey." Paul sat next to Rachel on the log.

"Hi," Rachel said uncomfortably.

I looked out into the distance. There were six dark shadows heading towards us from the opposite side of the beach.

"Sam," Jacob called out, pushing Bella behind him. We all stood up and joined Jacob.

"Who are you and what are you doing here," Sam yelled to the shadows that were moving closer. I could make out the faces of six large men.

"I'm Anthony and I'm from the Blancana tribe from Colorado. We saw your fire burning from the road and decided to come down here. Are you a part of the Quileute tribe," Anthony asked.

"Yes, we are. What are you doing around these parts," Sam asked, taking a protective stance in front of us.

"We're looking for someone. She killed my mate and we thought you may know where to find her," Anthony replied. He was close enough to where I could make out his face. He was a large man, much like Jacob and Sam. The other men with him were also huge, but not as big as Anthony. "This is my pack. I'm the Alpha."

"Nice to meet you Anthony. I'm Sam and this is my pack. Now may I ask who you're looking for?"

"A red headed leech. She killed my mate a few weeks ago and we're on the hunt for her. Have you seen her," Anthony asked, glancing in my direction. The rest of his pack stared at me for a few seconds before reverting their attention back to their Alpha.

"Yea, we've been hunting her too. Matter of fact she was just here this morning but she disappeared over the border," Jacob explained.

"She's been terrorizing our town. We chased her here last night but lost her. We saw your fire and thought we would make our way here. Is this your whole pack," Anthony asked, glancing at me again.

"Yes, this is Jacob, Embry, Quil, Jared, Paul and Leah," Sam introduced us.

"You have a female wolf in your pack," Anthony asked, obviously astonished. "She's your mate?"

"Um no. She actually doesn't have a mate," Sam replied. Well thanks for throwing that in my face.

"And why not? You're Alpha, which makes her Alpha female."

"Look we're not here to talk about who's mating with who. We're hunting the leech too so you can go home now," Paul snapped.

"She's intriguing," Anthony mumbled. "I don't get how you aren't her mate, very strange." Anthony began stepping towards me.

Jacob pushed me behind him, growling at Anthony. _What the fuck?_ "I think you should go. We have it from here." Jacob growled.

"We'll be seeing you guys around then. We aren't leaving until we find the leech," Anthony stated. "I'll see you around Leah."

"No you won't," I replied, pushing Jacob hand off of my stomach. "What was that about Black?"

Jacob blinked. "I don't know, I just thought he was getting too close."

"I could have handled myself, how many times do I have to tell you that." I pushed passed the pack and sat back down next to Rachel.

"Okay so things are just getting stranger as the night goes on," Rachel said, taking a long sip of her beer. "If I get drunk maybe I can forget all about this tomorrow."

"What was that about Sam," Billy asked.

"Some pack from Colorado is here looking for the red-head. She killed the Alpha's mate and they followed her here. They don't appear to be dangerous or trying to cause any trouble," Sam explained.

"He's interested in Leah though. Did you see how he kept looking at her," Jacob asked.

"Yea that was just weird," Seth added. "I thought you were about to rip his head off."

Jacob glanced at Seth and then me. "He wasn't even doing anything, geez."

"Well keep an eye on them just in case. Is the red-head still around here," Old Quil asked.

"She was here this morning and we chased her to the border. She disappeared after that. I don't get what she keeps coming back for," Jacob said.

Bella shifted uncomfortably. "I do. I know why she keeps coming back."

Everyone turned to look at the vampire lover.

"Me. She's after me," Bella whispered.

"Go figure." I slapped my leg.

"Why would she be after you," Embry asked.

"Edward killed her mate and now she's trying to kill me," Bella replied.

Jacob tensed up. "And the bloodsucker left you here alone."

"All the vampires love you huh? Just can't get enough of you," I said, smirking at Bella.

"Leah don't start, "Jacob warned.

"This just keeps getting better and better," Rachel said before falling off the log. Too bad I didn't get drunk; this was going to be a long night.

**I'm sorry for the long wait. I started this chapter 3 weeks ago and I was just able to finish it today. School got really busy and I had a lot of dance performances. So I apologize for the wait. **

**The tribe that was introduced in this chapter is not an actual tribe. I just made it up; I was trying to be creative if you couldn't tell. I know they kind of came in and went back out without really being introduced but you'll get to know them. **

**Again sorry for the wait and thank you for your reviews and support! I promise the story will pick up soon; I'm just trying to get everything set and explained before it takes off where I want it to go. I'm really excited about my plans for it at this point and I hope you all enjoy it. **


	5. Insecure

**I don't own Twilight or the characters. S. Meyer owns it all except for the characters I introduced last chapter. The song lyrics belong to the brilliant Delilah. **

_**Though I'm hanging on a sign, I'm insecure**____**  
**__**You got me walking on a line, still I need you more**____**  
**__**And all the things I feel I hold 'em back from you**____**  
**__**And all the dreams I dream I'm sure they'll hold no truth**____**  
**__**I'm insecure**_

**Two months later **

**Leah's POV**

"What's your favorite color mommy? I like this one." Layla picked up a coral colored crayon and waved it in front of my face. "This one is pwetty too." She picked up another crayon and drew on her blank paper.

"I think that color is beautiful but don't you think daddy will like a boy color," I chuckled, earning a glare from Layla. She brushed her dark curls from her forehead and continued drawing her picture.

"I think daddy will like it anyway," Layla huffed. She was so much like me it wasn't even funny. She had my attitude, but she looked just like her father. Chestnut brown eyes and all.

"Okay whatever you say." I laughed and helped her color in the wolf that she had taken hours to draw.

"What color will my fur be mommy," Layla asked, pushing her dark curls back again.

"Hmm I don't know, but I bet you will be beautiful regardless," I replied, ruffling her hair.

Layla giggled and tilted her head to the side. "I wonder if it will be pink." Her eyes lit up with every word. I chuckled and kissed her cheek.

The door knob began to click and turn, causing Layla to run to the door.

"Daddy!"

The familiar bleach scent filled my nose and I pulled Layla back. The door flung open, revealing a tall vampire dressed in all black. His red eyes glistened as he stepped inside the house. Layla screamed and buried her head in my neck. I held her close, shielding her from the leech that stood before us.

"I need you to go to the hiding place baby girl. Stay there until I come to get you," I whispered in her ear. Her tiny arms tightened around my neck. "Go Layla, mommy will come back for you."

Layla kissed my cheek. "I love you."

"I love you too sweetie now go!"

I could hear her tiny feet patter against the wood as she ran to her hiding spot.

"What do you want leech," I asked.

"You already know what I want mutt. She's special, you don't realize that yet. She will die soon, just wait and see," The leech spat before running me back into a corner. At that moment I knew I wasn't going to see my little girl again.

I gripped the sheets as my body shot forward. This was the second nightmare in three days and they were getting worse every night. The little girl in my dreams always died or I died before saving her. I reached under my pillow and grabbed the sonogram picture.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered. Warm tears rolled down my cheeks. I had killed her; she never even got the chance to live. Although I didn't know whether I was pregnant with a girl or not, I just had a feeling the small child in my dreams meant something. Too bad I would never know and I would never get another chance to reproduce a child. I stuffed the picture back under my pillow and sunk under my comforter.

"Leah," a voice whispered from my window.

"Go away, I'm not patrolling right now," I barked, before turning towards the other wall.

"It's me, Anthony," the voice whispered again. _Anthony?_ We hadn't heard from that tribe in two months, we figured they had gone back to Colorado.

"What the hell are you doing here," I asked, pulling the comforter closer to my body.

"To talk, come out," Anthony whispered against the window. He was sitting in the tree right next to my window, peering inside my room. What a fucking creep. How long had he been sitting there staring at me?

"You have two seconds to get away from my window," I snapped.

"I'm not going anywhere until you talk to me," Anthony replied, jumping from the tree. I could hear his feet land and then tiny pebbles began to hit my window. I sighed loudly and threw the comforter to the side. I slid on some sweat pants and climbed out of the window.

"What do you want," I asked, crossing my arms across my chest. Anthony stared down at my breast before shifting his eyes back to my face.

"You're gorgeous," he whispered, taking a step closer to me. "You're absolutely gorgeous."

"Did you just call me out here to tell me that?"

"Um no actually I came to ask you something. Just trying to get to know you better. You remind me of her. It's unbelievable." Anthony stepped closer to me.

"What are you talking about," I asked, stepping around him and walking towards the street.

"You're just like Abigail. You look like her, smell like her and you even act like her. I've been watching you for the last two months and I keep asking myself why you're alone. Why don't you have a mate," Anthony asked.

"That's none of your business. Look, I'm not your precious little Abigail." Anthony continued walking towards me. He ran his hand through his dark, cropped hair. His tanned skin glistened in the moonlight and his dark eyes smoldered.

"You're the Alpha Female, why won't you claim your title," Anthony asked.

I rolled my eyes. Was he really serious? "Why are you so worried about my title? Maybe our pack doesn't work the way yours does."

"No I think most packs work the same way. You're the only female in your pack which makes you the Alpha Female. It only makes sense and I'm intrigued by you," Anthony explained.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" Jacob Black stood between the trees a few feet away from us.

"I'm just trying to get to know Leah," Anthony replied, his eyes still locked on me.

"Hmmm, I don't get why. Aren't you supposed to be hunting Victoria instead of getting cozy with my packmate," Jacob asked, tilting his head to the side. Here he was trying to play Superman again. Didn't he know I had a killer left hook and I could take care of myself?

"My pack is actually searching now, since you most know," Anthony shot back.

"I think you should leave," Jacob said through clenched teeth.

Anthony smirked and then turned back to me. "See you later Leah."

"No I don't think you will be doing that, not without her pack brothers around," Jacob replied. Anthony growled and ran towards the trees.

"That guy is a creep, did he hurt you," Jacob asked, looking over my body.

"Like I've said many times before, I can protect myself. He didn't even do anything. He just kept asking about my title in the pack and talking about his dead mate," I replied.

"I wonder why he's so interested in you. I will tell Sam so we can keep an eye on you more," Jacob said, running his hand over his face.

"Why were you out anyway? It's not your shift," I asked, leaning against a tree.

"I just came from Bella's and I was in the area. Why are you out here?"

"Because that guy wouldn't leave without me talking to him. He was being a pest. I'm going back to bed, see you later," I said.

"Yep." Jacob ran off towards the trees.

**At Billy's House **

"He's growing on me. He's really sweet Lee, you should see the necklace he got me. I swear I thought he was the biggest creep on earth but he's not that bad. I can't say I'm in love with him or anything, but he's a cool friend," Rachel said, taking a sip of her hot cocoa.

"Eww, nothing about Paul is cute or sweet Rach," I laughed.

"He has good hair, which is a plus. A guy with good hair is okay in my book." Rachel explained. "You should start dating again Leah."

I sighed. "I'm fine with being single. Too many problems involved with being in a relationship."

"I bet if you cleaned up that haircut of yours and put on some nice clothes, you would pull in all kinds of guys."

"Wait what's wrong with my haircut," I scoffed.

Rachel chuckled. "I can fix it for you. Just let me do it."

"No! I saw what you did to Jacob's hair when we were little."

"Hey, he was super cute with those bangs, he would have made the perfect little sister," Rachel gasped.

"No thank you, my haircut is just fine."

Jacob burst through the door, his clothes were soaked and his boots were covered in mud.

"What the hell is wrong with you," Rachel asked as Jacob punched a hole in his door.

"He's back," Jacob yelled, slamming his door shut.

"Who's he talking about," Rachel asked, peeking around the corner making sure Jacob couldn't hear.

"He can hear you; he has super wolf hearing ya know?"

"She took him right back after his ass left her stranded in the woods! I was there for her through all of it and she just dumped me to the side! I can't believe this shit," Jacob yelled. He reappeared in the living room with dry clothes.

"So the Cullen's are back," I asked raising an eyebrow. Bella had just jumped off the cliff yesterday and Jacob nursed her back to health. Maybe that was her way of getting her precious ice cube back.

"Yep. I was the one there when she decided to jump off the cliff, was her wonderful vampire boyfriend here to save her? No! I knew when she left early this morning that she was going to bring his ass back with her. I can't believe I thought we had something, such a waste of time," Jacob screamed. He knocked the phone off the table and plopped down on the couch.

"You didn't mention her leaving this morning when you were stalking me in the woods," I said.

"I was so pissed off I couldn't talk about it. I just want to beat someone's fucking face in," Jacob said through clenched teeth.

"I always thought she was a weird child," Rachel added.

"Shut the fuck up Rachel."

"Hey don't talk to me like that, I can still whoop your ass," Rachel shot back.

"She was probably just using you anyway," I suggested.

"I did everything to make her happy again and she just left me in the cold." Jacob shook his head in his hands.

"Aww cheer up little brother, they're more fish in the sea," Rachel said, getting up to join her brother on the couch.

"Well now you know next time he leaves her," I said.

"Yeah whatever," Jacob stood to his feet and headed towards the front door. "I'm going on patrol. You coming?" Jacob turned to face me.

"Yea sure. See you later Rachel."

"Bye!"

"Just to forewarn you, I'm in a bad mood. I don't have time for your bullshit today," Jacob warned.

"Get over yourself Black. It was just a little fling, no big deal," I spat.

"Don't make me hurt your feelings Clearwater, because you know I can," Jacob replied, removing his shirt.

"Sure you can because I care so much," I replied sarcastically.

Jacob shook his head and slid his pants off.

"Come on, I don't want to see all that," I yelled covering my eyes and walking behind a tree to shed my own clothes. I phased into wolf from and followed Jacob through the trees.

"_Sam said we're required to keep an eye on you since that guy is stalking you," Jacob thought. _

"_He's not stalking me, he's just a weirdo. I don't feel like he's a threat," I replied, running past Jacob. _

"_I do. I don't trust him around you." _

_I stopped dead in my tracks. "Since when do you care about my safety?"_

"_We're pack mates Leah. Why don't you let people protect you?"_

"_Because I can protect myself Black. I don't need a group of half-naked men running to my rescue when they think I'm in trouble. I got it, I can protect myself," I replied. You just couldn't protect that baby. An image of the sonogram and Sam ran through my mind. Oh crap, did I just think that? I tried to stop the images but they kept flooding my mind. _

"_Leah?" Jacob stopped and turned to face me. _

"_Lee," a booming voice entered my thoughts. Fuck, why did I think that? Why, why, why?! _

"_What was that about," Jacob asked, moving closer to me. _

"_Just leave me alone," I thought before phasing out. _

I ran behind the nearest bush and quickly put my clothes back on.

"Leah wait," Sam ran up behind me and grabbed my arms.

"Let me go Sam," I yelled, attempting to twist out of his grip.

"No! Not until you talk to me. Why didn't you tell me," Sam asked, turning me around to face him. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"It was none of your fucking business. That's why," I snapped.

"What do you mean it wasn't my business? That was my baby too Lee, you could have told me."

"It's not like you would have cared anyway. You were too stuck up my cousin's ass. Now for the last time, let me go," I replied.

"You know that isn't true. I would have helped you."

"Bullshit Uley." I pulled from his grasp.

Sam looked down at his feet and then back at me. "Did you-did you abort it Leah?"

I stared back at him with wide eyes. "No. I miscarried."

Sam sighed. "I'm so sorry Lee. I swear I didn't want any of this to happen. I wanted a life with you, I wanted a family. If I could take it all back and do it over, it would have been you."

"Yea, but you can't do that," I whispered.

Sam looked down at my stomach. "How far along were you?"

"It's doesn't matter." I looked off into the distance, trying to end the conversation.

"Really, why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I knew you didn't give a shit. This conversation is over." I turned on my heel and ran in the opposite direction. Jacob was waiting for me in clearing.

"What other secrets are you keeping," Jacob asked.

"Great, you're still here," I said sarcastically.

"I was just checking to see if you were okay. You don't have to be a bitch."

"I'm fine now let's finish this patrol so I can go home."

I felt a tiny tear roll down my cheek as I ran to find a bush. Why had I let that secret out for them to hear? Sam was going to treat me like I was a fragile child and Jacob was going to be nosey, watching my every move. He was beginning to act really strange towards me and I didn't like it.

"Leah wait," Jacob grabbed my arm and pulled me to his chest. "What the hell are you doing out here?"

"Just patrolling," Anthony said, walking into the clearing. The rest of his pack followed closely behind him. "Hi Leah."

"We have this area under control," Jacob said, tightening his grip on me.

"You know we can work together right? We don't have to be against each other," Anthony replied.

"We don't trust you."

Anthony laughed. "And why not? We don't pose a threat."

Jacob finally let me out of his embrace. "Because your pack doesn't belong here. You're lucky we're even letting you stick around."

"What is your problem with me," Anthony asked.

Jacob growled. "Finish your patrol and get going."

"How you been Leah," Anthony asked with a smirk. I could tell he was trying to really push Jacob's buttons.

"It's best you leave Anthony," I warned.

"Well since the beautiful lady wants me to leave, I will. See you later. Bye Jacob." Anthony nodded his head towards Jacob before sprinting away with his pack following him. I found it weird that they never talked; they just followed his every mood.

"That jackass just won't leave you alone," Jacob said.

"And you just can't stop acting like an overprotective brother. Geez." I was ready to go home after my eventful morning. My mind was cluttered and I felt like I was about to explode.

_**I realize that it's me being so cold**____**  
**__**Trapped in a box where my heart's been for so long**____**  
**__**I realize that it's me being insecure**____**  
**__**Feel I'm waiting on a sign, I'm insecure**_

**And there you have it folks! Thank you so much for your reviews, I really appreciate them! This chapter was so difficult for me to write and I have no idea why. I have literally worked on it for eight hours. I deleted so much and then typed it over again. Argh!**

**Please be patient with me as the story is still developing. How do you all feel about Anthony and Jacob's overprotectiveness of Leah? And how do you think Sam will treat Leah since he knows about the baby now? Hmmm, I guess we'll see. Thanks again! **

**Love, **

**Bri **


	6. Resentment

**I don't own the Twilight saga or the characters! S. Meyer owns it all. I just own Anthony and his silent pack. Hehe! The song lyrics belong to Beyoncé. **

_**Loving you was easy**_

_**Once upon a time**_

_**But now my suspicions of you have multiplied.**_

**Leah's POV**

"Is Jacob around," Bella asked, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. Jacob hadn't heard from Bella for three weeks and her vampire boyfriend was to blame for that. Supposedly he didn't want Bella around the wolves because we were dangerous. So running around with vampires that could possibly make you their next meal isn't dangerous? The fact that Bella listened to him is what annoyed me the most. Jacob had been there for her when her ice cube boyfriend left her in the woods. Sam was the one to drag her ass out. I think that makes us a lot more helpful than dangerous even though I would have left her in the woods that night.

"Yea, what do you want with him," I asked, blocking the entrance. Bella seemed like she was getting annoyed. She shifted her weight to her other hip.

"To see him. We need to talk," Bella replied.

"Why," I asked, earning a loud sigh from Bella. Finally someone could get under her skin. "I don't think he wants to see you."

"How do you know that? You didn't even tell him I was here." Bella crossed her arms as though she was trying to intimidate me. Nope, not working in your favor Miss Swan.

"Bella?" Jacob pulled the door open.

"Hey Jake, can we talk." Bella smiled weakly. This is exactly what annoyed me the most about Bella. Bella had an inner bitch in her but she always played this sweet, innocent role.

"About what," Jacob asked impatiently. He tapped his hand on the door, waiting for Bella to reply.

"Jake, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you and you know that," Bella replied.

"But you did. You knew that going back to him would hurt me. How couldn't you know that, regardless if you meant to do it or not," Jacob shot back. Jacob:1 Bella:0.

Bella hung her head. "I…I didn't mean to. You're still my best friend, you know that."

"No I don't. A best friend wouldn't do what you did to me Bella. I wouldn't have done that to you." I was proud of Jacob for not giving in to Bella because that's what she thought he would do. I could hear the pain in his voice as he spoke to her. It was hurting him to turn her away.

"Jake…"

"I can't do this right now Bella," Jacob whispered, but loud enough for Bella to hear.

"I'm so sorry," Bella said. "I hope that you can forgive me someday."

"Today isn't that day. I'll see you around Bella," Jacob stated before turning his back on his best friend.

Bella looked like she had been hit by a bag of bricks. Jacob's nonchalant attitude was a probably shocking to her since he was always waiting on her hand and foot. I was even shocked by Jacob's attitude toward Bella at this point. For the past two weeks, he had been moping around, hoping that she would come back to him. Truth is I never saw Bella staying with Jacob. Sure their relationship had bloomed over the time Edward was gone, but in the back of my mind, I never saw Bella staying. She was either going to go find her vampire boyfriend or run back home because she was too depressed to stay in Forks. The girl had jumped off a cliff for crying out loud. Despite what everyone else had said, Bella had jumped off that cliff to kill herself. She kept telling Jacob that she did it for fun. Bullshit. What normal person jumped off the highest cliff in La Push for recreational reasons? We only jumped off of it because we weren't exactly normal.

"He'll come around right," Bella asked me, interrupting my inner rant.

"I don't know," I shrugged and shut the door in her face. I never liked the bitch anyway, good riddance.

"Was she hurt," Jacob asked as I entered the kitchen.

"I don't know. You actually care?"

"She's my best friend Leah. Of course I care," Jacob claimed.

"I don't think she's your best friend after today," I chuckled.

"It's not funny. I just want her to feel my pain for a while," Jacob admitted, taking a bite of his huge sandwich.

"Yea whatever. You didn't ask me if I wanted one."

Jacob took another bite and shrugged his shoulders. "You can fix your own, I'm not your mother or your boyfriend."

I rolled my eyes and slapped Jacob in the back of the head. "Fine I'll just call Anthony over to fix me up a sandwich." I knew Anthony's name alone would irritate Jacob. I didn't get why he didn't like the guy, it wasn't like he was causing trouble. Every time he came around, Jacob started acting like I was his property or something. It was really odd.

"Leah," Jacob warned.

"I don't get it. Why do you get all weird when he comes around," I asked, sitting in front of Jacob.

Jacob grunted. "I just don't like the guy's attitude. He's an arrogant bastard."

"And you guys aren't. You walk around with your chests puffed out all day. You're beginning to freak the people on the rez out."

"You like the guy or something," Jacob asked. I could tell he was beginning to get annoyed with me.

"I don't know him so I don't know. Every time he comes around you pop out of the bushes," I replied.

Jacob just glared at me and took another bite of his sandwich. "You just ruined my appetite. Here." He pushed his plate in front of me.

"Yes! I knew that would do it," I chuckled and finished off the sandwich. Rachel burst through the front door and threw her purse on the front table.

"What the hell is wrong with you," Jacob asked.

"Nothing!"

"Come on Rachel, I didn't mean it like that," Paul said, following Rachel around the living room.

"What the fuck did you do to my sister," Jacob demanded.

"I told you I didn't want to be your girlfriend right now. Why are you going around telling everyone that I am? I'm still trying to get past the fact like you imprinted on my like you're a fucking duck or something. I shouldn't have come back here, something told me not to," Rachel replied, pacing the living room. Paul attempted to grab her arm but she yanked away. "Don't touch me!"

"You heard her Paul. Lay another finger on her and I will break your damn hand," Jacob warned.

"Rach you're my imprint-"

"Ahhh! I'm so fucking sick of hearing about imprinting! I don't want you to like me because of this imprinting shit. I want you to like me because you like me, not because you're forced to," Rachel explained with tears rolling down her face. Paul reached out to her, but she yanked away again. "Don't touch me. Just…just leave me alone." Rachel ran past Billy and into her room.

"What's going on here," Billy asked, wheeling himself past his angry son. Jacob's chest was heaving as he stared Paul down.

"Rachel isn't happy about the imprint," Paul answered, glaring at Jacob. "You don't understand Black. Maybe one day you will."

"I told you before if you made her cry you would have to deal with me," Jacob growled. I was still sitting at the kitchen table enjoying the show. If Jacob was going to kick Paul's ass, I wanted to see it for myself.

"Jacob calm down. Paul let's go talk outside," Billy suggested. Paul nodded and followed Billy's orders. "Calm down Jake." Billy patted his arm and Jacob helped his father out the door.

"Is he gone," Rachel asked, peeking her head out of her bedroom door.

"Nope, he's outside talking to your dad," I replied.

"Ugh!" Rachel slammed her bedroom door.

**At Sam and Emily's (a month later)**

"How many people have they found," Jacob asked.

"About five so far and some people haven't been found yet," Sam explained, running a hand down his face. "This has to be a vampire doing this."

"Have the Cullen's given you any more information," Jared asked.

"Nope. They know as much as we do. They aren't sure what it is either. We better figure it out soon before more people disappear," Sam added. "I was thinking that other pack and help us out."

"Hell no, not a good idea," Jacob spat.

"We need help, we can't do this alone. Something is out there killing people and we need to do everything we can to protect our people," Sam replied. "I'm going to ask them if they will join us. No ifs, ands, or buts about it."

Jacob growled under his breath. "I don't like that Anthony guy."

"Why because he's trying to push up on Leah," Embry asked, wiggling his eyebrows at Jacob.

"He's an asshole," Jacob replied.

"Well we could use the help. The Cullen's can figure stuff out on their own turf," Paul added.

"Is Bella still here? What will they do with her while they hunt for the killer," Quil asked.

"She texted me the other day and said she's going to Florida to visit her mom. I don't know if Edward is going with her," Jacob replied.

"Hmmm. That's interesting. Does she know the red-head's been lurking around here lately," Jared asked.

"I don't know, I didn't ask," Jacob replied annoyed.

"So this means more patrolling huh," I interrupted.

"Yea. You'll be patrolling with me in the morning and Jacob at nights," Sam answered.

"Why do I have to patrol with you," I exclaimed. Ever since Sam found out about the baby, he was treating me like a porcelain doll. This is exactly why I wished we couldn't see in each other's minds. I wanted to think freely without a group of men reading my every thought. The rest of the pack didn't know about the pregnancy. Thank God.

Sam ignored me and continued with his orders. He explained everyone's patrol duties and what we were to do if we saw something suspicious.

"So when will this other pack join us," Seth asked. He usually remained pretty quiet at meetings, taking all of the information in.

"I don't know as soon as I talk to them I will let you guys know. Just stay alert for the time being."

"Leah can I talk to you for a minute," Emily asked from the doorway of the kitchen.

"Yea I guess. What's up?"

Emily picked at her finger nail and glanced up at me through her long eyelashes. "Um I don't know if Sam told you or not but…um. We're getting married." Emily peeked up at me, looking for some kind of reaction.

"You're what," I asked, trying to control my breathing. I could either phase in this kitchen and rip the other side of her face off or get out of here before doing so. Was she fucking kidding me? First she's steals my boyfriend from me now she planned on marrying him.

"I'm so sorry Leah," Emily cried.

"No you aren't Emily! Stop fucking saying you're sorry. If you were so sorry you wouldn't keep doing this shit to me," I yelled. The rest of the pack ran into the kitchen. Sam stepped in between us, pushing me back towards the door.

"Get out of here before you phase," Sam urged.

"Get your hands off of me! Emily you're a scandalous bitch!"

Emily cried louder and Sam turned around to comfort her. "I'm so, so sorry. I didn't want to hurt you."

"Bullshit! What else are you going to take from me? Huh? I have never been able to have something for myself because of you. Stop acting like you're the perfect little housewife Emily! You're the one who's the home wrecker, stop acting like I'm the bad guy," I yelled. My body was beginning to shake.

"Leah stop," Sam yelled back.

"Stop what!? Stop hurting her like you two are hurting me? Shit Sam what do you expect from me? You want me to act like I'm happy with this?" Tears began rolling down my face.

"Leah come on," Seth urged, pulling on my arm.

"I can't take anymore! Just make it stop," I sobbed. The pack stared back at me in disbelief. "I can't fucking take anymore!"

"Leah shhhhh it's okay," Seth whispered as he wrapped his arms around me. "You're a bastard Sam."

Sam looked back at me and I could see all the pain and regret hidden in his eyes. To my surprise he didn't snap at Seth like he usually would when someone insulted him. I felt a warm hand rub my back and it was none other than Jacob Black. Emily cried loudly from the corner. Sam hugged her to his chest as she mumbled her sorries.

"Let's get you home," Jacob said softly. Jacob pulled me out of Seth's arms and led me toward the backdoor.

I paused in front of Emily. "You were my best friend." I sniffed. "Now you're my worst enemy." My hand connected with Emily's scarred face. "Don't speak to me again. Ever."

"Leah," Sam growled.

"Don't you even think about it Uley," Jacob growled, taking a protective stance in front of me. "Let's go Seth."

"What happened," my mother demanded as Jacob and Seth led me in the house.

"Her and Emily had a fight," Seth explained as Jacob pushed me up the steps.

"About what," my mother asked.

"She's marrying Sam," Seth replied.

Jacob opened up my bedroom door and pulled me inside. "You okay?"

"No," I murmured. I slipped my shoes off and sat on the edge of my bed.

"Um I know you probably don't want to hear this right now but…Sam does still love you," Jacob began. "He just has a stupid ass way of showing it. I thought you were going to kill Emily in there. You were actually scary," Jacob chuckled.

I smirked. "I didn't mean to completely lose it. The pack probably thinks I'm really crazy now."

"Why would you care what they think? None of us have gone through what you have, we have no right to judge," Jacob said.

"Since when did you become Dr. Phil?"

"I'm wiser than what my age says. Plus I get it from my dad," Jacob explained, smiling widely.

"What's gotten into you, why're you being so nice to me all of a sudden," I asked.

"You seem to be the only one that understands what I'm going through with Bella. Plus I'm nice most of the time," Jacob replied.

I put my face in my hands as I could feel another round of tears coming on. This hurt entirely too much. "I feel like I don't have anyone anymore." I quickly wiped the tears from my eyes. "And I hate crying in front of people!"

"Crying doesn't make you weak Leah. Hell I even cried when Bella went back to Edward." Jacob patted my back. "And you have your mom, Seth, the pack and you have me. I know we don't like each other most of the time, but I'm here whenever you need to talk. I mean that," Jacob responded.

"Thanks Jake. Trust me I won't be crying in front of you guys anymore," I noted.

"Yea, whatever Clearwater."

"You alright," Seth asked from my doorway.

"Not really, but I'll be fine eventually," I replied.

"Mom's talking to Emily now. She isn't happy about any of this," Seth added, stepping into the room..

"Oh no, she's getting the Sue Clearwater talk. I feel sorry for her," Jacob laughed.

"I don't. She better be happy that's all she's getting."

"You gave her a pretty good slap. Good thing you didn't hurt her badly," Seth said. "Although she did deserve it."

"Well I'm going to get out of here. I'll see you guys tomorrow," Jacob said, slapping my leg.

"Hey Jake, thanks again."

"Sure, sure." Jacob smiled and shut my door.

**I sat down and wrote this chapter this morning after I dreamed it up last night. I literally had a dream about this entire chapter! I'm a S. Meyer in the making! Okay probably not but it was an exciting dream. The most difficult thing about this chapter was the direction I wanted to take Leah. I know most of the time she is a hard ass but I wanted to break her in this particular chapter. A person can only take so much before they snap, so I wanted to add that element. Don't worry, she won't be crying the whole story. Leah is still going to be bad ass! And I always imagined her slapping the crap out of Emily too, Meyer just didn't add that part sadly. How many of us would have done the same? I know I would if my cousin ever did what Emily did.**

**As for Bella, she will be back next chapter. I hope you guys don't think I totally hate her character because I don't. Bella just has some odd ways that I don't get, but I don't hate her. Leah just hates her and I like Leah more than I like Bella's character. Hehe! **

**Thank you so much for the support and reviews. It's amazing how much you guys inspire me to write more. Thanks again and I hope you enjoyed this chapter. **


	7. Heavy in Your Arms

**I don't own Twilight or the characters. S. Meyer owns it all! The song lyrics belong to Florence + The Machine. **

_**Note: This chapter will switch between two POV's. **_

_**I was a heavy heart to carry**_

_**My beloved was weighed down**_

**Anthony's POV**

Leah was exactly like her. It was frightening how much they were a like. Rose was the love of my life, the one who I woke up to every morning. She was absolutely breath taking and had a beautiful heart. Her biggest goal was to protect the people of our village and protect her pack. She died trying to protect her people and the pack. If only I had gotten there sooner she would be here with me now. That damn leech snapped her right in two, killing her instantly. I'm glad that she didn't have to experience pain but that image would never leave my mind. I had nightmares about her death every night.

"Anthony have you heard anything from them," Carl asked, handing me my cellphone.

"Yep. Sam wants us to help their pack hunt for whoever is killing these people. I have a feeling it's Victoria. It has to be," I replied, pulling the draw strings of my shorts tighter.

"That will get you closer to Leah," Brandon added. "Just get that Jacob kid out of the way."

"She deserves to be in a pack where she's Alpha female, maybe you can convince her. She's a beauty and she would make beautiful cubs. Give it a shot," Carl replied.

"Trust me Jacob isn't going to get out of the way anytime soon. He's attached to her hip. Every time I try to talk to her, he pops up out of nowhere**. **I can barely say hi to her without him butting in," I explained.

"Hmm, that's odd. She's not his girlfriend right," Brandon asked, tying his shorts.

"Nope, she doesn't have a mate but he sure acts like he's her mate. I'm very frustrated because I'm attracted to her," I sighed.

"Don't give up," Carl urged.

"Trust me, I won't."

**Leah's POV**

My mother's French toast always woke me up in the mornings. It was either the vanilla or the nutmeg that woke me up instantly.

"I knew that would get you two up. Sam called for you Leah, he said he was just checking up on you. I guess you two have patrol soon," my mother said, placing the French toast on three plates. "You sleep well?"

"No, not really," I replied, picking at my food. "I'm not patrolling with him."

"I would do it but I have school. Sorry," Seth chimed in. At least he had a good excuse; I wished I still had school. "I'm sure he won't be messing with you if Jacob's around. He almost ripped Sam's throat out last night."

"I'll rip his throat out myself if he puts his hands on you. He's done enough as it is. What did you do to Emily last night anyway, he wouldn't tell me," my mother asked.

"She slapped her. Like really slapped her."

Seth was just dying to tell my mother I slapped the living daylights out of her favorite niece. Well she wasn't really her favorite anymore but she still was cordial to Emily.

My mother gasped. "Leah now you know I don't condone violence. You could have killed her or injured her like Sam did.

"But I didn't," I murmured.

"You should apologize for hitting her," my mother suggested.

"I can't believe you would say that. I'm not apologizing to her for anything," I shot back.

"Leah."

"Nope, I'm not apologizing for shit mom," I replied. My mother hit me in the back of the head with a wooden spoon. "Ow!"

"Watch your language."

As much as I didn't want to patrol with Sam, I knew he would Alpha command me into doing it. I met him at the border of our patrolling perimeters.

"Hey," Sam said as I approached him.

"Hey," I mumbled under my breath.

"Lee um what happened last night-"

"I'm not here to talk about last night. Let's patrol so I can go do something better with my day," I snapped before Sam had the chance to finish his sentence.

"You could have killed her," Sam replied. Did he not get that I didn't want to talk with him? Sam wasn't as dumb as he appeared to be, he knew how to push my buttons.

"Oh like you almost did," I asked.

Sam growled. "That was uncalled for Leah."

"Was it? I'm just being truthful, something you should learn how to do," I replied. I took my spot behind the bushes and stripped off my clothing to phase. I had gotten so much better at this phasing thing since my first time. I didn't have to think of things that pissed me off in order to phase. I could almost do it naturally now.

"_We're going to meet with Anthony first. He called me earlier," Sam thought. _

"_Then why are we in wolf form. He can't hear us," I thought back. _

"_To get to the clearing faster Leah." _

"_Shouldn't the rest of the pack be with us," I asked. _

_Sam growled. "Do you have to ask so many questions?"_

"_Fuck you Sam," I growled back. _

Once we made it to the clearing, we phased out and quickly got dressed. Anthony and one of his pack members were waiting for us in the middle of the clearing. Anthony had grown since the last time I had seen him which was just the day before. He smiled as we approached him.

"Good Morning Miss Clearwater." He kissed the top of my hand. "Hello Sam. Glad you could meet with us."

"Thank you for agreeing to help us," Sam replied, shaking Anthony's hand. "We will need all the help we can get with this thing killing all these people. We believe it's a vampire, but we aren't too sure."

"Has the red head been in your territory recently," Anthony asked, glancing at me.

"No she hasn't. That's why I'm thinking she's the one responsible for the killings. So I'm allowing you guys to patrol in our territory as well as your own. If we work together, we may be able to figure this whole thing out. We can even patrol together to make it easier," Sam explained.

"Sounds like a plan. Can I talk to Leah alone for a second," Anthony asked, reaching out for my hand.

"Why," Sam asked.

"I promise there's nothing funny going on, I just wanted to speak with her about something," Anthony explained. Sam didn't seem too comfortable with the idea of me talking to another packs Alpha and neither did I. I had already told Anthony to stay the hell away from me and I think Jacob made that clear also. Why did he seem so fascinated with me?

"Whatever you want to say to her, you can say it in front of me," Sam replied. Anthony smirked at Sam's irritation with him.

"I thought we were practically a pack now," Anthony said.

Sam pushed me behind him. "No, don't get too comfortable. We're just working together but that still means we will respect each other's packs. You're not talking to her without any of us around."

"Why are you guys so protective of her? It's not like she's Alpha Female. Right Sam?" Anthony pushed. I chuckled as Sam's arm began to tremble. One thing I liked about this Anthony guy was his ability to piss Sam and Jacob off within seconds.

"She's our packmate. That's why we're so protective of her," Sam responded.

"No I don't think that's the case. See I've been thinking," Anthony began pacing back and forth in front of Sam. "Leah's the only female wolf in your pack but she isn't your mate. I find that rather odd because my pack also had a female wolf and I was automatically drawn to her. I couldn't deny her and now that she's gone I'm drawn to Leah but there's always that one person blocking her. That Jacob Black kid is always in the way like she's his mate, but you say she doesn't have one."

My eyes widened. "Wait so I'm not the only one?"

"Rose was the only other female to shift. No one knows why or how it happened, that's why I'm so fascinated with you Leah," Anthony explained.

"So you're telling me you're interested in making Leah your mate," Sam asked, still holding me behind him. I pushed his arm to the side and stepped forward. "Leah."

"Why does he keep protecting her Sam," Anthony asked, stepping towards me. "I wouldn't doubt if he is in those bushes waiting on me to make a move." Anthony looked towards the trees.

"I don't know, maybe because he's her pack mate and you need to respect that," Sam replied, stepping closer to Anthony.

"Hmmm I don't think that's it. It's almost as if he's the Alpha instead of you," Anthony pressed.

"Don't you ever question my power. You got that," Sam asked through clenched teeth.

Anthony smirked. "Oh trust me, I'm beginning to question who the real Alpha is here. I'll see you later my dear." Anthony kissed my hand and walked off towards the trees. His silent pack mate followed closely behind him.

"Now I see what Jacob's talking about. Arrogant asshole," Sam said as Anthony and his pack mate disappeared.

"You did what? Why would you take her near him," Jacob yelled as Sam explained what had happened in the clearing.

"Calm down Jacob, he didn't even do anything to her. But I'm beginning to question why you're being so protective over her too," Sam said.

"You don't realize what he's trying to do," Jacob began. "He's trying to make her his Alpha Female."

"We don't know that, all he said was he was interested in her. We just have to make sure he keeps his distance and does his job. That's all," Sam explained.

"Yea we can keep him distant by not working with him and his pack. I don't trust him and I don't get why you do," Jacob argued.

"Jacob's really lighting into Sam's ass huh," Rachel asked. I was sitting in the living room of the Black home as Sam and Jacob argued over Anthony. Billy shook his head as they began yelling louder. "Why is he so protective of you all of a sudden?" I shrugged and Billy just smiled. Old Quil sat in a chair opposite Billy and listened carefully to the argument in the kitchen.

"Sam you're out of your fucking mind! If he's already telling you that he's interested in her then why would you let him anywhere near her?"

"First of all I think I'm Alpha, so don't you ever question why I'm doing something. Do you want more people to die or do you want to kill it before it kills more innocent people? Think rationally Jacob," Sam yelled.

"Oh geez," Rachel cringed and stuffed her mouth with more popcorn. "Dad aren't you going to stop them before they ruin the kitchen?"

"They'll be fine," Old Quil answered.

"Leah go in there and calm your boyfriends down." Rachel elbowed me in the side.

"Shut up Rachel."

"I'll talk to you later Jake," Sam spat. "I'm sorry about that Billy. Your son is incredibly stubborn." Billy nodded his head at Sam. "I'll see you all later."

"Did that Anthony guy touch you," Jacob asked as he sat on the couch.

I sighed loudly. "What is your problem Jacob? Why are you acting like I belong to you?"

"I'm trying to look out for you. You actually trust that Anthony guy," Jacob asked. I could hear the frustration in his voice.

"Geez Jake, you're acting like she's your girlfriend or something. Calm your tits," Rachel replied. "I'm sure Leah can handle herself if that guy gets out of place."

"Sam is so irritating. How can he trust some random pack that we barely know? Hell the rest of the pack has never spoken a word to us," Jacob ranted.

"It's the Alpha in you Jake," Old Quil began. "There's another Alpha here that you feel is a threat to your pack which is bringing out the leader in you."

"How do I fix it," Jacob asked.

"You can't. It runs through your veins." Billy replied.

**Anthony's POV**

"So what do we do now," Brandon asked.

"Time to start planning plan B. Trust me, I always get what I want," I replied.

**Leah's POV**

**Three Weeks Later **

"I can't believe you're going to her graduation party. Weren't you being an ass to her just a couple of months ago," Rachel asked her little brother. He was dragging Embry and Quil to Bella's graduation party. Sadly Jacob gave in to Bella and they were on speaking terms again. She had come to the bonfire a few weeks ago and they seemed to be best friends again. I will never understand what Jacob sees in Bella, but whatever.

"She's my best friend Rachel," Jacob snapped.

"Yea the same girl that had you pouting s few weeks ago. What the fuck," Rachel argued. Paul grabbed her hand and pulled her down in his lap.

"Bella's cool, Rach," Quil chimed in. "Plus we're going with him to keep him out of trouble."

"So you're going to hang out with a bunch of vampires that have already graduated ten million times? Weird," I added.

"You're just mad no one gave you a party Leah," Jacob spat.

"Have fun dweeb," Rachel said as the three stooges left.

**Thank you for your reviews for the last chapter! I'm toying around with the next chapter now. I'm not sure what exactly I want to do with it yet but as always I will figure it out. I'm trying to move the story forward more so that's why I'm randomly skipping ahead in the last two chapters. You'll see why I'm doing that later on. If it isn't obvious, this chapter is set in Eclipse when the mysterious deaths and kidnappings were going on. **

**I used Anthony's POV in this chapter for a reason. I wanted to allow you all to see what is going through his mind. Since I write in Leah's POV most of the story, it was impossible to do that without switching the POV's. **

**Thanks for reading again! I will probably have another one-shot up soon. I find that writing those keeps me from getting writer's block. If anyone has any Leah/Jacob one-shot ideas just shoot me a message or write it in your review. I already have one idea on my mind that's itching to get out. **


	8. Hater

**I don't own Twilight or the characters! Stephanie Meyer owns it all. She doesn't own my Anthony and the silent pack though. That's mine! The lyrics belong to Delilah. **

_**See I won't let you steal my thunder**_

_**For you I won't fall under**_

Here lately most of my days were bad, but today was starting out as one of my worst. As usual, I didn't get enough sleep because I was uncomfortable or got too hot. I was going to invest in a nice window fan because my ceiling fan wasn't doing the job. I could hear Seth's snores through the wall, which kept me up longer. Like every night since they break-up, I cried myself to sleep for a few minutes before waking up from a nightmare. I was completely miserable and it felt like that wasn't going to change anytime soon. Dealing with Sam on a daily basis was enough to drive me crazy and he didn't know when to leave me alone. Having a pack of men in your head all the time was also nerve wracking. I got tired of seeing bad porn and fantasies while patrolling.

I was tired as hell; I had not got a good night's rest in a long time and it was catching up with me. I tossed my comforter to the end of my bed and swung my legs around. My hot feet felt so good on the cool wood floor. I buried my head in my hands, trying to wake myself up. All I wanted to do was climb in a hole far away from La Push and stay there for awhile.

I could hear sobs coming from my mother's room. This was how every morning started for her. She cried for about 20 minutes, and then she stared at my father's picture and cried more. I felt like the worst daughter in the world. I took my family's rock away and there was no way to bring him back. I peeked through the crack in my mother's door. She held an envelope in one hand and my father's picture in the other. She stared back and forth between the items in her hands and the sobs got worse with each glance.

"Mom?" I slowly opened the door and stepped inside. She threw the envelope in the drawer of her bedside table. "You okay?" I asked already knowing her answer.

She quickly shook her head and sobbed louder. "I-I-I don't know how much more I can take."

My heart sunk into my stomach. "I'm sorry." She smiled through her tears and nodded. "You know I would do anything-"

"Please promise me something Leah. One day you'll stop blaming yourself for this. I want you to be able to live a happy life without hating yourself for your father's death. I don't want you to be bitter your whole life. Just promise me that okay." My mother wiped at the tears rolling down her cheeks.

"I can't promise you that," I whispered, sitting on the edge of her bed. "I'm so unhappy mom."

"Oh Leah." She wrapped her arms around my shoulders. "Don't say that. Remember this is all a phase, it won't last forever."

"I'm trying hard to get over all of this, but it's almost impossible. I feel like I'm trapped and there's no way of getting out. What else can go wrong," I cried. "I'm sick of fucking crying." I roughly wiped the tears from my eyes. "I'm at my breaking point."

"I can't say I understand because I've never been in your position. But you have so many people around you that love you and you can talk to us anytime. Even if they get on your nerves, your pack brothers love you. Don't you ever forget that," my mother explained, rubbing my shoulders in an attempt to comfort me.

"Did you know the whole time?"

"Know what?"

"About what was happening with Sam and Emily? I was just thinking about it last night. Dad knew what was going on the whole time but he didn't tell me. Did you know," I asked.

She fiddled with her fingers. "I had a clue but I didn't know exactly what was happening. He was always so secretive about it and got mad when I questioned him too much. We fought a lot about it before you phased. I wish I would have known everything, I would have told you because I hate seeing you like this. It'll get better, I can promise you that."

It wasn't going to get better anytime soon. If only I could get away from La Push and leave all this crap behind. Being stuck here wasn't making my life any better and if anything it was holding me back. I had dreams that I wanted to fulfill before this shit ruined it. Everything was ruined. "What was in that envelope? " I asked after a few minutes of silence.

"Oh nothing. Just some junk." She slammed the drawer shut after taking out a pair of scissors. "Please let me fix your hair."

"What's wrong with my hair?" I rubbed my hand through my jagged hair. There was a lot wrong with my hair.

"It's all uneven. Let me cut it before I leave for work. We can do it in the kitchen," my mother said. She wiped the away the last of her tears and grabbed my hand. "Let me fix you up."

"I look like a fucking boy mom!" I yelled as I combed through my cropped hair."What did you do?"

She slapped my arm with the brush. "Language Leah. It looks better than what you did. It'll grow back. I think it's becoming on you."

"Yea now I fit in with the guys for real now." I shook my head and combed through my hair hoping it would miraculously grow back. "Thanks for trying."

"Well you should have let me do it in the first place. I have to get to work though. There's some food in the fridge, share with your brother. Oh and I need you to go to the store for a few things. I left the list on the table in my room. Let me go get it."

"I can get it mom, go before you're late," I replied.

"No, no I got it," she said as she ran off to her room. She usually let me go in her room without asking, what was her deal now? She ran back into the kitchen with the list in her hand.

"Don't forget anything please. See you later," she kissed my cheek, grabbed her purse and rushed out the door. That woman was always late for something.

I hated going to the grocery store more than anything. Everyone in La Push knew about me, Sam and Emily and they were constantly whispering. I was either getting stared at or glared at when I went into the store. Some people felt sorry for me and others thought I left Sam to hang out with a pack of half-naked men. The rumors were on going and I heard something new every time I went into the grocery store. I guess every woman in La Push didn't have anything better to do than hang out in the store and gossip about people they knew nothing about.

I grabbed a cart and pushed it down the bread aisle. Two older women stood at the end of the aisle and whispered to each other. _"Maybe she likes women now. She definitely looks like a boy." "Poor Sue, she's gotta be hurting. Her only girl is unmarried and obviously doesn't care about her appearance. That break-up took a toll on her." "I see why Sam left her for Emily." _I clenched my teeth as I pushed the cart towards the end where the older women stood. They stopped whispering when they noticed me coming towards them and smiled widely. _Fake bitches._

"Hey Leah. How's you and the family holding up," one lady asked. Funny how all the older people on the Rez knew my name when I didn't even know theirs.

"We're good." I smiled back.

"That's good. I'm so sorry about your dad. Your mom must be devastated," the other woman cut in.

"Yea but she's getting better," I replied.

"Hmmm. Well I'll see you around. Tell your mom I said hello," the woman said. Her friend followed her as she slowly walked away whispering something about me looking like a boy. I had to get out of this grocery store before I snapped on someone.

"Leah?"

"Mrs. Kendall? I haven't seen you in the longest, how are you," I asked hugging the woman that used to change my diapers. Mrs. Kendall was an old family friend and she also taught high school English.

"You look…. different. I almost didn't recognize you lady bug," Mrs. Kendall said. Did I really look that much different? Sure I had grown a lot but my face didn't look that different. Did it?

"Yea I cut my hair. How's Kim," I asked, trying to change the subject.

"She's doing okay. She just went through a bad breakup but she's doing really good," Mrs. Kendall replied.

"That's good. Well I have to get going. I'll tell my mom you said hello," I said, pushing the basket past Mrs. Kendall. She smiled and nodded her head as I walked away.

I moved through the store quickly and picked up the items my mother had listed. The sooner I got out of this store the better. I was tired of people staring at me like I was some foreign creature. As I was walking out of the store, I bumped into a large man.

"Oh hey Leah. I didn't think I'd find you here," Anthony said flashing a smile.

"What are you doing around these parts," I asked, readjusting the sacks in my hands.

"Just waiting on our meeting later. I didn't have much to do so I was headed to the beach. You wanna come," Anthony asked, holding out his hand.

"No thank you. I have to get these groceries home."

"Could I talk to you for a quick second," Anthony asked. He stepping in front of me and held his hand out. "I can help you carry these things home."

"Oh no I have it."

Anthony sighed. "Well can I at least talk to you?"

This guy just never gave up did he? "About what Anthony? If I let you talk will you leave me alone?"

"Yes, after this I won't bother you anymore I promise," Anthony replied. He smiled widely as I walked over to a bench and sat down.

"You have two minutes," I huffed.

"Okay. Well first I would like to explain why I'm so attracted to you. I'm not trying to be weird or freak you out or anything but…you remind me of my mate. Your personalities are so much alike and now that I've lost her, I am drawn to you. I can't explain it…it's this weird, tingly feeling that I get in my stomach when I'm around you. It's like we're meant to be but I know that's not the case. You belong to someone else but you just haven't figured it out yet. There's no way a pack with a lone female wolf can exist without an alpha pair," Anthony explained.

"Look I'm not here to-"

"Leah just listen to me. You need to figure it out soon because it will make your pack stronger. Although I want you so badly, I know that I can't have you. We would have been so good together but I know it isn't right to take someone from someone else," Anthony continued.

I raised my eyebrows. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"I wish I could have someone like you in my life. You're strong, independent, and damn you're gorgeous. You don't see it, but it beams off of you. I guess my two minutes are up, I'll see you later," Anthony replied, standing to leave. "You'll figure it out soon."

"Hey Anthony. Umm I had some questions about your mate," I began.

"Rose?"

"Yeah. Did you guys ever figure out how she…how she shifted?"

Anthony sat back down and took a deep breath. "I can't really tell you that. It would be hard to explain."

"But you know how it happened?"

Anthony nodded. "Yes. It's very complicating, I can't really explain it to you. Our tribe is a lot different from yours Leah, so some things may not make sense."

"Like what," I asked.

"I can't tell you right now. You won't understand." Anthony paused for a few seconds. "She was the only person who understood what I was and accepted me. My whole family disowned me after I killed my grandfather and she was there for me. He had a heart attack after I phased." Anthony looked down at his hands. "I better get going. I have to patrol. I'll see you at the meeting." Anthony stood up quickly and walked towards the woods. It was rather odd how he opened up to me about his family but he couldn't tell me about Rose. What was the big secret?

_Meeting _

"This isn't a good idea; we can do this by ourselves. The Cullens are already helping why do we need them," Jacob complained. He and Sam had been arguing most of the night about Anthony and his pack. While Jacob thought it wasn't a good idea, Sam thought we needed all the help that we could get.

"This is for the better Jake. Do you want this army of vampires to kill our people," Sam argued. Jacob growled under his breath. Too bad this wasn't just about the people of La Push. This whole army was after his best friend and that's who we were really protecting. Why couldn't Bella have a normal boyfriend?

"We don't need them Sam. I can't believe that you're trusting them so easily," Jacob added.

"He's not that bad of a guy and he doesn't pose a danger to us. If they do something stupid, we can handle them. Until then they're working with us. This discussion is over Black," Sam ordered. Jacob sat back on the driftwood after giving Sam a dirty look.

"When are the Cullen's meeting with us," Paul asked.

"Tomorrow afternoon. We're going in wolf form because I don't trust them in our human form," Sam replied. "Anthony's pack will also be there so they can learn how to fight newborns."

"Will Bella fight too," I asked, smirking at Jacob.

"Don't be stupid Leah," Jacob shot back.

"Well we're always protecting her, I thought she would help us out," I replied.

"Don't start," Jacob warned.

"You know I'm telling the truth."

"Shut up," Jacob shouted. "I'm not in the mood for your shit today." When it came to Bella, Jacob didn't allow anyone to say anything negative about her. When Paul complained about her coming to bon fires, Jacob about ripped his head off. He was in love with a girl that didn't even want him and that was sad. He didn't see what I saw in Bella or what his own sister saw. She wasn't a horrible person but she was dragging him along because she wanted to have her cake and eat it too. Bella knew who she wanted to be with but having Jacob on her side made her feel better about breaking his heart. She felt that she could keep him close to keep him happy and herself happy too. It was so sick and it was disappointing to see Jacob being strung along when we all knew how it would end.

I shrugged my shoulders and leaned back on the driftwood. I could see Anthony and his pack approaching us from a distance.

"Here they come," Quil said.

"Will I get to fight too," Seth asked Sam.

"If it isn't on a school day," Sam answered.

"I should be able to fight for my people Sam. I'm a part of this pack too," Seth protested. Ever since we had joined the pack, Sam didn't allow Seth to participate in pack activities a lot because of school. While school was very important, Seth felt like he wasn't a part of the pack because he wasn't allowed to patrol as much.

"School comes first," Sam replied. Sam didn't want Seth to be like his other pack brothers who had basically dropped out of school once they phased. "But you will train with us though. We all need to know how to fight newborn vampires."

"Hello," Anthony said as him and his pack got closer.

"Glad you guys could join us," Sam replied. "Have a seat. We just wanted to update you guys on what's going on. The Cullens have figured out that there is an army of vampires coming. They think this army of newborns is what's killing people in the area. Our main concern is who is leading this army and that's why we all need to be on the lookout for the red-headed leech because I think she has something to do with it. I know you guys haven't had much contact with vampires like them before so meeting the Cullen's tomorrow is probably a good idea. They aren't like most of the vampires you've encountered."

"You trust them," Anthony asked.

"Sort of but of course we can't be too trusting of them. They are vampires no matter how good they say they are. Tomorrow afternoon they'll teach us the ins and outs of fighting a newborn vampire. It's important we pay close attention so no one gets hurt in this battle," Sam continued.

"You're allowing her to fight," Anthony asked pointing towards me.

"Why wouldn't she," Paul asked.

"Well she may get hurt," Anthony added.

"I'll be fine. I can handle my own," I replied.

"Okay." Anthony smiled, earning a growl from Jacob.

"Before we practice with the Cullens I want to practice amongst ourselves. We need to get comfortable with fighting as one pack so we don't make any mistakes," Sam stated.

"Why the fuck did you hit her that hard," Jacob yelled running to my side. "You didn't even let her phase."

"She needs to learn right? She wasn't even ready," Anthony yelled.

"You motherfucker," I yelled holding my arm in place. It was loosely dangling from my shoulder. Anthony had charged at me in wolf form, knocking me into a tree and pulling my shoulder out of place. He said it was going to help me be more alert and that's how they treated the female wolf in their pack. Jacob almost ripped him a new one until Seth and Sam pulled him away from Anthony. "I wasn't even phased!" I yelled.

"Do you think those vampires will care if you're phased or not. You need to learn Leah," Anthony replied.

"She's a part of my pack, not yours. We don't do things like that around here," Sam shouted.

"She needs to learn," Anthony repeated.

"You put your hands on her like that again and I'll kill you myself. You understand me," Jacob spat, closing the gap between him and Anthony.

"Oh really?" Anthony raised an eyebrow and smirked.

"How's that arm," Embry asked.

"It hurts like hell," I replied, trying to move my arm.

"We'll have to pop it back in place," Sam said.

"She'll be fine," Anthony said nonchalantly.

"When my arm heals I'm going to kick your ass," I said through clenched teeth.

"Who's going to do it," Jared asked looking around at his pack brothers.

"I can do it," Anthony volunteered.

"Hell no. You're not laying a finger on her." Jacob pushed Anthony back behind him.

"What's your problem Jake," Embry asked with a smirk.

"Can someone fucking fix my arm?"

"Alright, just stay still and close your eyes," Jacob suggested as he took my arm in his hands. He counted to three and the pain shot through my whole body as my scream echoed off the trees.

"Do you need some ice," Jacob asked as I sat at my kitchen table. He had walked me home after our practice in the woods.

"Nope. Shouldn't you be hanging out with your best friend," I asked.

"Please don't start Leah," Jacob replied, handing me an ice pack from the freezer.

"I told you I don't need it." Jacob snatched the pack from my hands and held it to my shoulder.

"You're so damn stubborn. I could kill that Anthony guy. I don't know what he was thinking," Jacob said.

"I can't believe he did it. I got it from here thanks." I pulled the ice pack from his hands and held it to my shoulder.

"Alright. Well I'm going to go over Bella's to see if everything is okay over there. I'll see you later on patrol," Jacob said.

I pushed the comforter off my legs and reached for my phone on the bedside table.

_I'm so sorry about hurting you earlier. I hope you can forgive me. –Anthony _

We had traded phone numbers with Anthony's pack earlier to keep in touch. I read though the other messages I had received. All three texts were from Anthony and one was from my mother.

_You're probably pissed. I'm so sorry.- Anthony _

_I hope you can forgive me. –Anthony _

_I'll be a little late tonight. I saw Charlie earlier and we're going to go out to dinner._

Charlie Swan? Why the hell was my mother hanging out with Charlie Swan? My thoughts were interrupted by a shadow on my wall. I looked towards my window to see a tall man peeking into my window.

**Sorry for the delay. School has been getting crazy since graduation is coming up. All my professors are giving papers and test at the same time. I think that do that to torture their students. HAHA But it's almost over. **

**Thank you for your reviews and support. I really appreciate it! **


	9. Pyro

**Hey all, I just wanted to say thank you for your support! I appreciate every review I get! **

**One of my reviewers brought to my attention that there isn't a divider indicating a change in scene. When I type the story in Word I put a divider but it's obviously not showing up on here. Grrr! Thanks for bringing it to my attention **_**Guest **_**. I will use another type of divider and I hope that fixes the problem. **

**Oh and those papers and tests that were keeping me busy have slowed down a little bit. But finals are coming up in May so things are going to get busy again until graduation. I got A's and B's on the tests and papers so that's a good thing! Enough of my babbling, here's your chapter. **

**I don't own Twilight or the characters! They all belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

**Leah's POV**

"Mom we're headed out," I yelled between the crack in my mother's door. She had spent most of her morning in her room cleaning out some of my dad's old clothes and shoes. She was going to keep most of it but thought she would donate some to the local thrift store.

I could hear her rushing to the door. "Okay baby. You two be careful and text me when you get home. I have to go to the hospital to work an extra shift today; someone didn't come in this morning."

"Okay I will. You almost done cleaning in there," I asked, noticing the bags under her red eyes. She wasn't getting much rest since she started picking up extra shifts at the hospital. She worked a lot more since dad had died. I guess it kept her mind off of all of it but it kept her away from her family. I noticed a change in our relationship since everything had happened. We weren't as close as we were when I was with Sam. I used to tell her everything, but now I felt like I couldn't say anything without her crying or not even responding. Don't get me wrong, we were still close but not how we used to be. She was slowly pulling away from us and I didn't want to let that happen. It scared me because I didn't want to lose another parent.

"No I have a lot more to go. I'm about to take a break and get some rest before work," she replied. She wiped a single tear from her cheek and wrapped her arms around me. "I love you so much." She squeezed me tightly as I wrapped my arms around her. Every day she seemed to get worse instead of better. Hell, I felt like I was getting worse but I had to be strong for her and Seth. Even though Seth was always smiling, I could tell he was changing too. I had to be the rock in this house and I was going to try my hardest to stay strong for them.

"I love you too mom. I'll text you when we're home," I said, giving her one last squeeze.

"Thank you. You know I worry about you two and this wolf stuff." She chuckled.

"Yea I know. Stop worrying so much." I saw her disappear in her room and I made my way down the steps. Seth was already waiting for me at the bottom with a huge smile on his face. He was so excited that Sam was allowing him to learn how to fight vampires. He was intrigued by this wolf crap while I could care less. I just wanted to figure out a way to stop in order to live a somewhat normal life. "What's got you all giddy?" I asked as I reached the last step.

"Jacob's going to work with me on fighting. Don't you think that's so cool? He's the best fighter in the pack and he's going to teach me too. Then maybe I can be the second best fighter," Seth beamed. He was beginning to look up to Jacob a lot since our dad died. I noticed him hanging around him a lot more. Hopefully he didn't pick up on his bad habit of falling for girls like Bella Swan.

"Who said he's the best," I asked.

Seth smiled widely. "The rest of the pack did. Did you see how he destroyed Paul in that fight the other day?"

"That's because Paul's a pussy," I replied. "Let's get going kid." I ruffled Seth's hair as we headed out to our pack meeting.

* * *

"We're going in wolf form because I don't trust them in human form. We can't forget they're leeches so we have to be cautious," Sam ordered. He walked back in forth between both packs, which were separated. The pack made sure Anthony stayed far away from me and that I didn't rip his head off like I intended to. "And Anthony, don't do some crazy shit like you did yesterday. You pull something like that again and I'll have to handle you myself. You're on my land so you follow my rules. Got that?"

Anthony smirked and nodded. "I don't follow orders but I promise I won't do anything crazy…today."

"Pull a stunt like that again and I'll rip your balls off and feed them to you," I spat. "How about I break your fucking arm and see how you like that?"

"I'm assuming you haven't forgiven me yet." Anthony smiled. Okay, I'm starting to see what Jacob was talking about. This son of a bastard was as arrogant as they come. He smiled smugly at my irritation.

"Fuck you," I replied while flicking my middle finger in his direction

"Oh no Miss Clearwater, I'm sure that would piss your little boyfriend off," Anthony replied, tilting his head in Jacob's direction. Paul laughed loudly and Embry covered his smirk.

"He's not my boyfriend, but I'll gladly let him kick your ass after I'm done with you," I snapped. At this point, I was on my feet and walking towards the sly Alpha.

"Leah sit your wanna be tough ass down," Paul said grabbing my hand.

"I don't think she's a wanna be Paul. Leah's lethal when you let her loose," Jared replied.

"Sit down Leah and Anthony would you stop pushing her buttons. I'll let her loose if you keep it up," Sam added, pushing me back to my spot.

"Hey I can handle myself, right Miss Clearwater," Anthony asked. Sly son of a bitch.

After five minutes of bantering we finally finished the meeting. We were supposed to meet with the Cullens in wolf form so I stripped out of my clothes to phase. I noticed Anthony across the field getting undressed. Was he so cocky that he couldn't even go behind a bush or tree to strip like the rest of us? I quickly phased and took off running towards Anthony. As I got closer I heard Sam shouting and Jacob cheering me on. Anthony turned around and my wolf body collided with his human one. As we hit the ground, I heard a loud pop and I knew I had done some damage. Serves the bastard right.

"Fuck," Anthony yelled. He collapsed on top of his dangling arm as his pack members ran over to him.

"What's wrong with you," one yelled in my direction. I growled and prepared myself to pounce on my next victim.

"Leah," Sam commanded. Stupid Alpha command. Jacob and Embry doubled over in laughter as Anthony continued to scream at in pain. The rest of my pack phased as Anthony's pack tended to their fallen pack member.

"_That was epic Leah," Embry thought. _

"_I bet he won't screw with you anymore," Quil added. _

"_You could have gotten yourself killed. Are you out of your mind, " Sam thought as he phased in. _

"_Oh shut up Sam. I handled myself well as you can see. You thought I was just going to let that go without getting my revenge. Serves the motherfucker right," I snapped back. _

"_We were there to protect her anyway. She did good," Jacob replied._

"_Who's we because I would have just stood back and watched," Paul chimed in as we began walking towards our meeting spot. _

"_You would have helped her Paul. Any where there's a fight, you're there to join in," Jared said. _

"_I would have helped you sis," Seth said sweetly. _

"_Aww thanks, you always have my back," I replied, looking towards Sam. _

The Cullens taught us everything from how to not let a vampire get their arms around you to what to do when you were in trouble. It was entertaining to see the Cullens beat up on each other; too bad we weren't the ones beating them up. Jacob spent most of his time being petted like a damn dog by Bella. It wasn't like he knew the ins and outs of fighting newborns either but of course he had to stick under his precious Bella instead of staying with the rest of us. Anthony glared at me the whole time, so Embry and Paul stood between us. I'm guessing it was for my protection but Anthony was the one that needed someone to protect him.

After two hours we were finally able to go home and prepare for this battle while Bella Swan sat on the sidelines and watched. I felt like choking that damn girl for all the problems she was causing. If she found a normal person to date we wouldn't be fighting an army of vampires or chasing after a vampire that wanted to kill her for revenge. Did she ever sit down and think about the consequences of dating a vampire? I would probably never find out what was going through her head.

I texted my mother once we got home, fixed Seth some tuna casserole and made sure he did his homework. On the way to my room, I decided to do a little snooping in my mother's room. The other day she was staring at an envelope but she never told me what was in it. She quickly tucked it away in her bedside table and it had been bugging me since. I pulled the drawer open to find the envelope still sitting on top of all her other paper work. I tore it open and a picture of a girl about the same age as me fell out. A letter was attached to the picture. I quickly read through the letter and my skin began to boil. How could she keep this secret from us? I let the letter fall to the ground beside the picture.

"Lee?" Seth stood at the door. "What's that?" He asked, eying the picture on the floor.

"Nothing. I'm going to bed," I said pushing him out of the room. I stuffed the picture away and threw it back in the drawer. I slammed the door shut and stormed off to my bedroom. What the hell else could go wrong?

_Two weeks later _

Alice had her vision. The army of vampires were supposedly heading our way so we were going to meet in the clearing. Jacob had to leave early in order to carry Bella up the mountain to her and Edward's camping site. He wasn't fighting in the battle, leaving all the dirty work up to us while he camped out with his leech lover.

"You guys remember everything they taught us," Sam asked as we prepared for our departure.

"Yep, I'm ready for these bitches," Paul said crushing his fist together. Emily ran out of the house and wrapped her arms around Sam's waist. I had not talked to her since I slapped her and I wasn't planning on apologizing for that anytime soon.

"You guys be careful okay," Emily said. She pecked Sam on the lips. "I love you."

"I love you too," Sam replied, hugging Emily tightly to his chest.

"We should get going so we can be there in time," Jared suggested. Emily nodded and gave Sam another kiss before going back in the house. Sam glanced at me and then back at the pack.

"Let's go," Sam commanded.

* * *

The battle began twenty minutes after we arrived. There were about a hundred or more of the red-eyed leeches. Fighting them was a lot easier since the Cullens taught us a few tricks. My feet dug into the ground as a newborn wrapped his arms around my stomach.

"_Shit," I yelled as I snapped at the marble arms wrapped around me. I finally got a hold on the leech's arms and ripped them clean off. _

"_These things are stronger than I thought," Quil thought. _

"_Just don't let them get their arms around you," Sam yelled._

The battle lasted for exactly thirty minutes. All this preparation for thirty minutes? I walked toward the Cullen clan in the middle of the clearing before the strong smell of bleach filled my nostrils. Newborns had a stronger scent than the older vampires.

"Leah don't," Edward yelled as I spotted the newborn leech a few feet from me. I growled and propelled myself forward as the leech ran toward me. I snapped at his neck and he wrapped his arms around my torso. I tried the trick that was a success earlier but this one was stronger and quicker. I could fill the pressure on my ribs and I could hear the cracking of bones.

"_Ahhhh," I screamed as my bones crushed. _

Jacob knocked the vampire off of me as the rest of the pack came to finish the job. Without trying, I phased back into human form and that's when the real pain set in.

"Leah," Seth yelled as he ran to my side. "Oh my God are you okay?"

The pain was horrible. I couldn't even speak or barely breath without pain shooting through my body.

"I'll have to reset her bones. He literally crushed her," Carlilse said touching my side.

"Please….don't… touch it," I gasped.

"Why did you go after it like that Leah? That was stupid," Paul yelled.

"Paul," Sam warned. "You'll be okay Leah."

"Fucking leech," Jacob growled as he kneeled beside me.

"Take her back to her place. I'll be there soon. Make sure you lay her flat and don't let her move too much," Carlilse ordered.

"Ahhh," I screamed as I was picked up off the ground. I could feel a shirt cover my body as the pack carried me home. Anthony and his pack watched from the wood line.

* * *

"You did good Lee," Jacob assured me once Carlilse left. He had to reset all my bones on the right side. My screams and curse words filled the house with every break.

"That hurt like a bitch," I croaked.

"Yea I know. Maybe next time you won't be so stubborn. You could have gotten yourself killed, why'd you do that," Jacob asked, tensing his jaw.

"I almost had it," I replied.

"Hmmm," Jacob said.

"What's wrong with you," I asked, noticing Jacob's odd behavior.

He shook his head. "Nothing."

"Jake, Bella is here to see you," Billy called out.

"I'll be back." He sighed loudly before shutting the door to my room.

He never came back that night, not even after all my other visitors left. My mother came to check on my several times. I never mentioned the letter and picture to her because I was still waiting on her to tell us. The problem was that she had been hiding things from us. We had a half sister and she couldn't even tell us about her. How long she known and what the hell was up with my dad having an affair? I was too exhausted to even yell at her. She simply gave up trying to talk with me and went to bed. It wasn't that hard for me to fall asleep tonight due to the heavy meds I was on.

* * *

I could feel warm arms wrap around my body as I was lifted from my bed.

"Shhhh."

My eyes slowly opened to find a tall figure lifting me through the window. He covered my mouth with his hand and handed me off to another figure outside the window. Was I dreaming? This medication was playing mind games with me.

"We need to hurry before someone comes. Keep her quiet," a voice whispered. I tried to twist away from the mysterious man but my body still wasn't healed so I wasn't strong enough. "Be still and we won't hurt you." I wiggled free and attempted to run before I felt a sharp pain in my back and my vision began to blur as I faded away….

**Woo I seriously need to go to bed now. I couldn't go to sleep until I finished typing this up for you all because I don't know when I'll have the time this weekend to post a new chapter. Thanks for your support once again and I apologize for the rushed battle scene. I suck at writing battle scenes so I avoided it in this chapter. **


	10. Going Under

**I don't own Twilight or the characters! Stephanie Meyer owns it all! The lyrics belong to Evanescence. **

_**Don't want your hand this time, I'll save myself.**_

_**Maybe I'll wake up for once.**_

**Leah's POV**

I woke up to the darkness staring back at me. I was on a cold, hard floor and I couldn't see a thing around me.

"You'll be able to see in a few hours," a voice spoke softly from the far corner of the room. Where the hell was I? "Landon is always misbehaving. You're in a dungeon; you'll be able to see once the sun comes up." The voice spoke again.

"Who's Landon," I croaked out. My right side was throbbing, I could barely move without sharp pains shooting through my body. I wasn't healing quickly like I was supposed to.

"I've been down here for years. This is where he keeps us, until it's our turn," the voice continued. A single sob bounced off the walls. "I'm next and if I can't do it then they'll kill me."

"What are you talking about? Who's Landon," I asked again.

The voice got closer. "He's been watching you for some time now. You're all he's ever talked about for the past week. After Anthony said he wanted to mate with you, Landon knew he had a chance. That's what happened with me but I know I won't be able to mate with him. I'm going to die, I can feel it." She sobbed loudly. "I should have listened to my friends and stayed out of that town."

"Wait, wait, wait. So let me get this straight. Landon is from Anthony's pack?"

I could hear the woman shift uncomfortably. "He used to be before he broke off on his own. Him and Anthony are brothers but they've never gotten along. Anthony's always been…better and Landon was the black sheep of the family. Landon broke off from the pack when they went to La Push."

"Aww good you ladies are bonding," a deep voice echoed through the dungeon. The room was flooded with light from the opened door. I got a good look at the woman that had been talking to me and the large man that must have been Landon. "Anthony was right, you are a beauty. Hi sweetie, I'm Landon."He held his hand out toward me.

I spit in his direction. "Fuck you!"

Landon growled and wiped the spit from his jaw. His eyes turned dark as he stalked towards me. "Looks like you'll have to learn the hard way." Landon sent a hard kick to my right side.

I cried out as the pain traveled through my body. "What the hell do you want with me?" I rolled to my other side and stood up slowly. As soon as I could stand up straight, Landon's hands were on my shoulders and my back was crashing against the wall.

"You think you're tough huh? I noticed how you acted when you were around your pack brothers. You're not so tough now without them here huh," Landon hissed, roughly shaking me. "I'm your Alpha now. You'll submit to me."

"I won't do anything you smug son of a bitch," I spat. Landon smirked and his eyes darkened even more. "Now get your grimy little hands off of me."

"Just do what he says Leah," the woman screamed from the floor of the dungeon.

"You better listen to her. She's been a good little girl since she's been here and she's still alive. If you continue to disobey me I'll have to kill you before I even have my fun. Now we don't want that to happen do we," Landon said. He moved in closer to my face. I could feel his breath trickle down my cheeks and his erection press against my thigh. "You feel that?"

" . . of .me," I said through clenched teeth. I tried to free myself from the tight hold Landon had on me but he was too strong. The only way I could fight him was in wolf form.

"Oh you won't be able to phase for some time. I injected you with some medicine that fixed you up," Landon said, nibbling on my ear.

"Get off," I screamed, kicking my feet at Landon's shins. He pushed me further into the wall.

"Don't fucking piss me off," Landon screamed. His eyes were midnight black now and his body began to tremble.

"Leah please listen to him," the woman cried out again.

"Submit to me," Landon whispered against my neck. "You don't know how much I want you Leah. I can give you what you want. You want a baby right? That's why you hide that picture under your pillow right? I can give you exactly what you want. "He left a wet trail between the valley of my breast. I continue to fight against his grip, punching his sides as he continued to kiss, lick and nip at my chest.

"Landon, we have another one to try out," a deep voice came from the door of the dungeon. "We'll leave her for last."

"Aww I was just starting to have fun," Landon whined. His rough hand began moving down my sides. "Isn't she gorgeous?"

"A real beauty, now come on before it's too late."

"I'll be back soon," Landon said, pecking my lips. I pushed against his chest but he didn't budge.

"I will kill you," I growled.

"Keep telling yourself that," Landon replied with a smug smile. "Take care of her Linda." Landon said to the women on the dungeon floor. He slammed the door shut and we were consumed by darkness again.

"You've gotta listen to him or he'll kill you," the woman said. I felt a cool hand grab my right arm. "They could've at least let you heal before bringing you here."

"Why are you down here? Who are you," I asked the small woman.

"I'm," she paused and took a deep breath. "I used to be Anthony's mate before Landon stole me away. I've been down here a few years, just waiting for him to come try me."

"You're Rose?"

"No Rose was his other mate and she died while protecting the tribe. I was his first mate before Landon stole me away. Rose was actually my best friend," the woman explained. "I'm Linda by the way."

"How the hell could he have two mates," I asked.

"It's very simple. All they have to do is change us and we become a mate. Anthony has had many mates in his life time," Linda explained.

So that's what he meant by his pack was very different from ours. They bit who they wanted to mate with so they could be a shape-shifter too.

"Anthony was so intrigued by you because you're a pure wolf. You're the real thing which means you'll create strong cubs. We can't really do that unless we get lucky. Sometimes we die trying because the wolves are much stronger than us. I still don't understand how you turned without any help; it's so…so interesting. You'll survive it because of that," Linda continued.

"The hell with them. I'll kill him before he tries anything with me," I bit.

A sliver of sunlight peeked through the tiny window above us. I finally got a good look at the woman who had been talking to me since my time here.

"You won't be able to do that Leah. You're just human right now, they've paralyzed your wolf trait," Linda explained.

"I'm assuming they did the same thing to you."

Linda shook her head. "No, I couldn't phase anymore after Landon took me. Once you're separated from the person who bit you, you can no longer phase."

"But how can Landon mate with you if he hasn't bitten you," I asked.

"I can still have children like a regular human but that doesn't mean I can breed a cub. Some of us…some of us get lucky," Linda said sadly. "I had a kid with Anthony."

"Where is he now," I asked.

"In Anthony's pack. His name is Brandon. I haven't seen him in years; they took him away from me as soon as I gave birth." Linda wiped the tears that were sliding down her face. "I moved from the Makah reservation to be with Anthony."

"Makah reservation?"

Linda nodded. I got a closer look at the woman as the dungeon got a little brighter. Jet black hair. Brown eyes. Defined jaw line. She had his smile. And that's when it finally clicked. This was the same girl in the picture.

**Jacob's POV**

"_What do you mean she's missing," I thought as my panicking pack brother's filled my head. I ran to Canada after Bella basically told me I had been wasting my time pursing her. She told me that it was always Edward, it would always be him. What hurt the most was the fact that I put her back together; I was the one there for her when he ran off to Italy. I had wasted so much time trying to force Bella to see what I knew she didn't want to see. I should have listened to that little voice in the back of my head that kept telling me to give up. In more ways than one, Leah had told me to give up. As crazy and bitchy as she was, I should have taken her advice. Bella would always be my best friend, but I needed to get past the fact that she was in love with my natural born enemy. I would never have her in the way I yearned to have her. _

"_Would you stop thinking about her, Leah's gone." Embry interrupted my inner rant. "There's an unfamiliar scent around her house." _

_Oh no, did we not kill all the newborns in the battle?_

"_No Jacob, this isn't a vampire stench. I don't know what it is but it doesn't smell like a leech," Sam thought. _

"_We gotta relaxed. Someone should have been patrolling and this wouldn't have happened. Maybe we should have checked on her more," Sam added. _

"_We can't blame ourselves too much. We needed the rest, plus with the threat gone no one probably thought about another one," Paul replied. _

"_I should have checked on her one more time. Something told me I should have," Seth said. _

"_It's not your fault Seth. Did that bastard Anthony see anything since he's always got his eye on her anyway," I asked. _

_The packs went silent. _

"_You don't think…" Embry began. _

"_Shit," Quil thought. "I knew it was something about that guy that was off."_

"_See Sam, I to-"_

"_I don't want to hear it. We shouldn't jump to conclusions until we find out what's going on," Sam snapped. _

"_I think it's pretty obvious Sam, stop being so fucking gullible. I told you time and time again that he was iffy, I didn't trust him from the beginning," I growled. "I'm almost there." _

"_Please hurry," Seth thought. Jacob could feel the wave of guilt washing over the youngest wolf. _

**Leah's POV**

"Why'd she write that letter then? If she knew he didn't know and that he had died, why would she write such a cruel letter," I asked. Linda had explained that my father and her mother were in a relationship before he met my mother. Her mother was pregnant when they broke up and by that time my father had moved to La Push and started a family with my mom. Linda had been raised by her mother and stepfather without knowing my dad was her real father until she was thirteen. She searched and searched for him until her mother finally told her he resided in La Push. Her mother then wrote a nasty letter to my mom saying that she had an affair with my dad, which wasn't true according to Linda.

"Because she's a bitch. She never wanted me after your dad broke it off with her. I see why he did now, she's so evil," Linda replied. "I wanted to know him but I'm too late. I'm sorry about your dad Leah and I'm sorry for what my mother did."

"It's not your fault. It's not like you knew about any of this shit either," I said.

The door to the dungeon flew open. "Awww goodie, looks like you two have bonded," Landon said. "I was thinking…I would like to try you out now." He pointed in my direction and Linda took a protective stance in front of me.

"Take me. She can't give you what you want," Linda hissed.

Landon cackled. "Ha! You're funny Linda. Move."

"No!"

I stood to my feet and moved Linda to the side. "You want me huh?"

Landon yanked my hand, lifting it to his lips and softly kissing it. "You're mine."

"I don't belong to anyone bastard. If you want me then you'll have to fight for me," I said, walking towards Landon.

"Hmmmm, I don't think you'll win that one."

I glanced back at Linda. "We'll make this a fair fi-"

Linda took off towards Landon, knocking him off his feet and onto the floor.

"You bitch," Landon yelled as he grabbed Linda by the neck.

"Leah go," Linda yelled. "Run, go!"

I reached for Landon's neck but Linda kicked me away. "Leah please go!"

I took one last glance and my legs propelled me forward and out the dungeon door. I could hear Linda's screams and the cracking of bones as I ran down the dark hall.

"Hey," I large man stepped in front of me. "Where do you think you're going?"

"I'd advise you to move out of my way," I snapped, attempting to punch him.

"Nope don't think so," a voice said behind me and then warm arms were around my waist, lifting me off the ground.

"Get your hands off of me," I screamed as I was carried off in the opposite direction. "Stop!"

"You're a stubborn one." I could feel a needle pressing through my shirt and into my back. "This should calm you down."

I could feel myself slipping away, into a dark abyss. I tried to fight it; there was no way I was going to die like this. But in the back of my mind I knew this was my end. Bye mom. Bye Seth.

**Jacob's POV**

"_I'm going to kill that son of a bitch when I find him." _

_**I die again.**_

_**I'm going under.**_

**I wasn't going to write another chapter this weekend since I have a test tomorrow, but….Yea obviously I wrote a chapter anyway. Don't worry, I still have lots of time to study, I just took breaks in between and wrote a little at a time. **

**I know a few of you said you didn't like that Leah wasn't the only female wolf. Well what do you think now since you know that she really is and the other two were created? I had it in my mind the whole time that Leah would remain the only one. The others are just generic versions because they weren't born with the gene. The only one that sort of had the gene was Linda and her gene wasn't as prominent which is why she didn't phase until being bitten. **

**I always played around with the idea of Harry having another child and I ended up with the idea you saw in the chapter. I never took Harry for the cheating type so I didn't want to make him out of a bad guy. He already lied to Leah about what was going on with Sam and I figured that was enough. Linda's mom was just the ultimate bitch and wanted to piss Sue off. **

**Thanks for your reviews of the last chapter! **


	11. No One's Gonna Love You

**I don't own Twilight or the characters! Stephanie Meyer owns it all. But she does not own my little crazy pack of silent wolves! The song lyrics belong to Band of Horses.**

_**We're reeling through an endless fall**_

_**We are the ever-living ghost of what once was**_

**Jacob's POV**

"Where is she," I growled forcing Anthony against the Clearwater home. Anthony struggled against my grip.

"I don't have anything to do with that," Anthony replied. I rammed him against the wall once again, hoping to get some kind of answer out of him. From the beginning I sensed he had his eye on Leah and I knew he was up to no good. Victoria was dead and the newborn war was over, but Anthony and his pack stuck around. Unlike Sam, I didn't see them as extra help, they were a nuisance instead. Anthony pawned over Leah while his pack just stood back and watched. I knew something was off about them from the start; they shouldn't have even gotten the chance to stay around.

"Look here you arrogant motherfucker, you either tell me where she is or I'll kill you," I hissed.

"What do you know," Sam asked. Anthony's eyes widened as the rest of the pack formed a semi-circle around us. "Where is she dammit!" Sam yelled.

"I told you…I know nothing," Anthony growled. "Let me go!" He ripped out of my grasp and straightened his collar.

"You know something Anthony. I know you do," Seth replied, stepping forward to meet Anthony's threatening gaze. "You're the one so obsessed with her. You can't look me in the eyes and tell me you don't know where she is."

"It's either you tell us or you die. Right here and right now," I threatened. Anthony turned his attention to the buttons on his shirt. "You can't even look me in the eyes." The pack began to close in on Anthony and he finally caved in.

"I think one of my ex-pack brothers has her," Anthony whispered. "He's the only one who does shit like this," Anthony explained.

"So you had someone else kidnap her for your own good," I asked through clenched teeth. "Where is she!"

"If you would calm down I could explain," Anthony urged.

I crossed my arms across my chest. "Explain what?"

"Landon's looking for someone to mate with and Leah has the strongest chance of creating pure wolf cubs," Anthony explained. "He knew I was interested in her and he's always been the one to take what's mine."

"Whoa! Take what's yours, she was never yours to begin with," Sam spat.

"And she's no longer yours either," Anthony responded.

"Where is she," I yelled over everyone.

"I can show you," Anthony said. "It's kind of far from here so we have to go in wolf form."

We began making our hike through the trees and up the hills. Anthony walked in front of us so we could keep an eye on him to make sure he wasn't up to any funny business. Every now and then he would turn around to make sure we were still following behind him.

"_Do you think they hurt her," Paul asked. It was surprising to see Paul was actually worried about Leah seeing as to how much they were at each other's throats. "I wouldn't want anything bad to happen to her Jake." _

"_Let's try to stay positive about it. You know Leah can hold her own," Quil replied. _

"_We need to get there as soon as possible," I pressed. _

"_I hope they didn't hurt her," Seth said. _

_Just hold on Leah, we're almost there. _

**Leah's POV**

I felt like I had been hit by a Mack truck ten million times. I could barely move anything on my right side. I couldn't even remember what had happened to me in the last hour or so. I spent the last hour sliding in and out of consciousness.

"Hello beautiful," Landon said caressing my cheek. "Shhh, it's okay. I didn't hurt you. I wanted to make sure you were awake."

"You…" My throat was so dry that I could barely force my words out. The burning sensation made me choke. "You're dead."

Landon chuckled. "No, no, no honey. I'm nowhere near dead. You may think you are though. You still hurting?" His fingers caressed the right side of my body, causing me to flinch. I wasn't able to move much because of the robes tied around my wrist. "We thought you would try to run away."

"You mother-"

"Shhh, you talk too much." Landon placed a single finger over my lips. "Do you need another dose of medicine?" I shook my head. "I'm sorry this was the only way we could be together. It would have been much easier if Anthony and that pack of yours wasn't in the way. You do understand that it's not my intent to hurt you right?" His finger traced the outline of my lips. "If you just cooperate with me, I won't hurt you. Now Anthony on the other hand, he wanted to hurt you."

While Landon continued to talk, I began loosening the ropes around my wrist. There was no way that I was going to believe this man wouldn't attempt to hurt me. He was already lying shirtless in bed with me. Did he really think I was going to trust him because he's supposedly nicer than Anthony? Both of the bastards were crazy and we shouldn't have ever got involved with them in the first place.

"You're too beautiful to not have a mate. You're just going to waste," Landon continued.

Landon turned onto his back and stared up at the ceiling as he continued talking about his life with Anthony's pack. The rope loosened on my right wrist and I pulled my hand free. I wrapped my left arm around Landon's torso causing him to jump.

"You….how'd you get loose," Landon asked, grabbing my hand gently.

"That's my little secret," I replied seductively, my hand moving across his abs. "So you want me bad huh?"

"Why the sudden change of heart," Landon asked, kissing my forehead.

"You don't seem too bad to mate with I guess," I replied. I hitched my left leg over his hip and his massaged his temples. A moan escaped his lips as his hand trailed down my thigh.

"You're perfect Leah," he whispered. "Perfect for me."

"Hmmmmm." I dug my heel in his crotch and twisted it back and forth.

"What the fuck," Landon yelped. I gave him one last twist and swiftly jumped to my feet. The throbbing on my right side reminded me that I was still injured. "You're dead now!" I grabbed the lamp sitting on the bedside table and launched it at his head. Landon scrambled off the bed, holding his head. "Come here!" He reached for my arm but I ducked out of the way in time. My right side was screaming at me, but I knew my only way of getting out of this place was to kill Landon.

"You really thought I wanted your ass," I asked, throwing a punch to Landon's nose. I could hear the bone crunch under my fist. Landon growled and quickly grabbed my wrist. I wasn't going to lose this battle, no matter how big and strong he appeared to be.

**Jacob's POV**

"Leah! Come on Leah, wake up. Leah," I shook her shoulder, trying not to injure her more. We forced our way into the dungeon Anthony's brother had built for himself. We had to kill two pack members before we found the room where Landon was holding Leah hostage. Once we busted our way in, we found Leah in a corner. Her right side was severely bruised and her heartbeat was off. Landon finally entered the room and we had to phase in order to kill him before getting Leah out as quickly as possible.

"Come on Leah, can you hear us." Seth tapped his sister's good arm and put his ear to her chest. "Her heartbeat is really off Jake."

"We need to get her out of here and to that Cullen doctor guy you all know," Anthony replied. He kneeled down next to Leah.

"Get away from her," I growled. My instincts were still telling me this Anthony guy was no good. Anthony brushed Leah's hair with his hand. "Anthony…"

"Step back," Sam ordered, pushing Anthony away from Leah's limp body. "Jacob we have to go."

"How are we going to get her to the Cullens from here," Jared asked.

"I'll carry her" I volunteered.

"That's impossible Jacob. Do you realize how far away we are," Quil asked.

"I'll carry her, let's go," I repeated. I slowly lifted Leah from the ground and cradled her against my chest.

"Try to keep her still," Sam said.

"Where do you think you're going," Paul asked as Anthony began walking with us.

"Home."

"Home? I think you're going the wrong way," Embry added.

"Look, I've helped you find her, now I would like to collect my pack and go home. Our job here is done and it looks like I won't get what I want." Anthony explained. "I promise you, there will be no more harm done. I had nothing to do with my brother kidnapping Leah. I swear I didn't."

"Then how did he know where to find her," I asked as Leah began to stir in my arms.

"I don't know. He probably spent a lot of time watching her. He's always been like this. He's always hated me," Anthony replied. "I'll be leaving when we get back. You'll never hear from me again."

"If you step foot on our land again I can't promise you what I won't do to you," I spat.

"Jake, we should go," Sam urged, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Good-bye Anthony."

"I hope she's o.."Anthony was cut off by a large rock colliding with his head.

"Come on, let's go," Seth said, brushing rock dust from his hands.

_Two hours later _

"How is she," I asked as Carlisle came down the steps.

"She's doing a little better. Whatever they injected in her is starting to wear off but I want to do a few more test," Carlisle explained. "She asked to see you Seth."

Seth spent the next two hours upstairs with his sister. Carlisle ran a few more tests on her and said she would be fine but she needed some rest before she began patrolling again.

"I'm guessing your little girlfriend is off with Edward," Paul said. Why did he even have to bring her up?

"Don't irritate me Paul," I growled.

"Cool it," Sam warned. Paul just smirked and shrugged his shoulders.

"Jake? Leah wants to see you," Seth said as he hit the bottom step. "Don't worry, she's not in the mood to rip anyone a new one."

"Why does she wanna see me," I asked.

Seth shrugged. "She just said tell Jacob's ass to get up here now."

….

"Come in I won't bite," Leah said.

"Are you okay? We killed that little motherfucker that did this to you." I pulled a chair up to the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel like shit," Leah replied with a chuckle. "I almost had him."

"Didn't look like it once we got there."

"Trust me, I almost had him until he made me hit my head. But I wanted to thank you for carrying me all that way," Leah said.

"No problem. Sorry for not coming back that night, I was kind of upset."

"Yea I know. That bitch always gets you all pissed off. You done with her now," Leah asked.

I sighed. "I have no choice now; she's obviously done with me."

"Her loss."

"You need to get some rest. You wanna see anyone else," I asked, placing the chair back in its original spot.

"Nope," Leah replied. I grabbed her hand and gave it a small shake. I snatched my hand away when I felt a surge of electricity shoot through my arm. Leah gasped. "Did you feel that?"

**Thanks for your reviews for the last chapter. Next chapter will be full of Blackwater. You'll also find out what happened with Anthony and that silent pack of his. I already have it planned out, just needs to be typed and posted. I also have another story idea that I've been playing around with. It's been eating at me for the past few days. Thanks for reviewing again! **


	12. Revelry

**I don't own Twilight or the characters! It all belongs to Stephanie Meyer. The lyrics belong to Kings of Leon. **

_**Note: This chapter is written in third person instead of first person. **_

_**I get lost in the night.**_

_**So high don't wanna come down.**_

_**Three Days Later**_

Leah's scars were the only evidence left from the kidnapping that took place three days before. She was up to patrolling but of course Sam didn't want to take any chances and made her stay home. Leah fought with him for hours but he didn't budge on his decision. Jacob even had to pull Leah away from Sam after she punched him in the jaw. She was just about to knee him in the crouch before Jacob picked her up and drug her out of the house. She beat on his back as he ran down the porch steps and to the lawn. Sam and the rest of the pack followed close behind and Sam failed at trying to calm her down.

"You're a bastard Sam! I'm perfectly fine and I think I should be the one deciding if I patrol or not. You're not my father and you sure as hell can't claim me as your girlfriend. Worry about her," Leah yelled, pointing a finger at Emily who had appeared behind Sam. Leah and Emily weren't on speaking terms yet. Leah was too stubborn to apologize to her cousin after slapping her a few weeks ago and Emily was too afraid to approach Leah because of her raging temper. In the past three days Leah's temper had gotten worse. She was lashing out at everyone and when she wasn't doing that she stayed in her room staring at the wall. The pack noticed how her attitude had changed after the whole kidnapping situation and they feared the unthinkable had happened to her. Landon was set on mating with Leah and they often wondered if he forced himself on her. She would never say and they never asked.

"Why can't you just take a break? Hell I wish he gave me one," Paul asked, crossing his arms across his chest. Leah's chest began to rise as she took in deep breaths. Paul could sense she was getting pissed so he kept pushing her buttons. "Get over yourself Clearwater. Stop acting like a fucking princess and stay home like he said."

"Why don't you mind your own damn business Lahote," Jacob spat. Leah wiggled out of his embrace and stomped over to Paul.

"Don't fucking push my buttons today asshole. I'll rip your balls off and feed them to you," Leah hissing, poking Paul in the chest with every word. She turned her attention to Sam who was holding a steaming Paul back. "And you…you don't tell me when I'm ready to do anything. I said I'm fine and that's the last time we're having this conversation. You got that?"

"Leah…" Sam sighed.

"I'm patrolling!" Leah's voice bounced off the trees. It was almost as if she Alpha commanded Sam or something. Leah stomped off towards the woods as she ripped off her clothes and phased.

"You just like pushing her over the edge huh," Jacob asked Sam. "Let her patrol if she feels like she's up to it."

"Why do you even care," Paul questioned Jacob and Embry snickered.

"I hope she beats your ass one day," Quil added.

"Leah couldn't hurt a fly," Jared chimed in. Everyone gave him a smug look. "What?"

"I'm not afraid of many chicks but Leah is one I wouldn't mess with. Right Seth," Embry said.

Seth hunched his shoulders. "She threw a can of beans at my head for reading her diary. She shows no mercy."

"Well I'm going to do my shift. I'll catch you guys later," Jacob announced. He ran off towards the woods, stripped his clothes and phased.

"_Leah?"_

"_What," Leah snapped. Jacob's paws dug into the soil as he pushed himself forward. Leah was the fastest out of the pack and everyone always had to catch up with her when she was on the move._

"_Don't you have somewhere to be," Leah asked, noticing that Jacob was still in her head. She had been pushing them away for the last couple of days. "I'm fine." Leah said, answering Jacob's thoughts. _

"_No you're not. We're here for you Leah, stop pushing people away," Jacob replied. He finally caught up with the runaway she-wolf and stepped in front of her. "Phase out."_

"_Jake, I'm fine. Let me finish my patrol. I don't get why everyone's so worried about what I'm doing or not doing," Leah snapped. _

_There she goes again, Jacob thought. "We can talk. Phase out." _

"_I don't want to talk. Why doesn't anyone understand that? You guys are so fucking annoying."_

"_Leah come on. You can talk to me," Jacob insisted. _

"_Yea and you'll go back and tell them I'm a complete mess. No way."_

"_I won't tell them anything. I promise, now phase out."_

"_Ugh, I don't want to Jacob. Go away," Leah protested. _

"_I'm not going anywhere until you talk. You've been a zombie for the past few days and that isn't healthy," Jacob replied. _

"_And it's not healthy for you to be moping around over Bella," Leah shot back. _

_Okay, that was a low blow and she knew it. After their moment three days before, Leah had been acting weird towards Jacob. Every time he came in a room, she would leave or simply not say a word to him. He was lucky if he earned a 'hi' or a fling of the wrist from her. _

"_I'm phasing out. Meet me in the clearing when you decide to stop being stubborn," Jacob said before running towards the clearing. _

After ten minutes, Leah appeared in the clearing. She slowly walked towards Jacob and plopped down next to him when she reached him.

"You're really getting on my nerves," Leah said. She picked at the chipping polish on her nails. Jacob never saw her wear nail polish before. Maybe it was something new she was trying since she spent so much time cooped up in her room.

"You're worrying us," Jacob replied. "What's going on with you?"

"Nothing, I'm fine," Leah said quickly. She continued to pick at the nail polish until Jacob grabbed her wrist. "What do you think you're doing?" Leah spat through clenched teeth.

"Why won't you talk about what happened? What did he do to you Leah," Jacob pressed, ignoring Leah's glare.

"Why does everyone keep bugging me about this shit! I said I'm fine. Ask again and I have no choice but to kick your ass Black," Leah yelled. She snatched her wrist from his grip and went back to picking at her nails.

"We're just trying to help you."

"I don't need anyone's fucking help," Leah bit. "You know what, I'm going home."

"Leah…"

"No! I'm so sick of people asking me how I am or why I'm not talking. I don't mean to be a bitch but geez can you all stop babysitting me like I'm some frail child? I'm perfectly fine for crying out loud! I'm fine Jacob, F-I-N-E. There, I even spelled it out for ya. Happy," Leah's chest was heaving when she finished her rant. The pack and her mother were suffocating her, she felt like everyone's eyes were always following her like she couldn't take care of herself.

"You say you're fine but I don't believe you. You've been snapping at everyone like crazy," Jacob explained.

"What's new? Don't I always snap at everybody," Leah asked. She stood up and dusted her shorts off. "I don't even need an answer to that question. I'll see you later." Leah didn't even bother to strip her clothes behind a bush before phasing. Jacob watched her run off through the trees in her wolf form. Leah was far from okay.

…**.**

The whole pack, even Paul, was worried about Leah's well being. She didn't even patrol the next day, even after her temper tantrum about patrolling the day before. Seth said he couldn't get her out the bed and she skipped out on breakfast. When a shape shifter skips out on breakfast, something is terribly wrong.

"Has she told you anything about this Landon guy," Sam asked Jacob as they stood at the edge the woods.

"Nope. She bit my head off for asking her yesterday. She says she's okay and we need to stop babysitting her." Jacob explained. He ran his hands through his hair. "She's not right Sam."

"I know. Sue called me this morning and said Leah's behavior is beginning to worry her. She said she broke her bathroom mirror this morning and cut her hand up pretty badly. When she asked her why she did it Leah didn't respond," Sam said.

"She was fine the other day when she woke up at the Cullens."

"Well she's not fine now and we need to keep an eye on her. I know I'm the last person she wants to look after her but could you just keep a close eye on her," Sam added. "I'm sure Seth is already watching over her so I don't need to tell him."

"Trust me, I was keeping an eye on her anyway. No need to tell me either," Jacob replied before turning his back on his Alpha.

_**Leah's House **_

People didn't think she could hear when they were talking about her. She heard every whisper and noticed it stopped every time she entered a room. Didn't anyone realize she had wolf hearing? She heard her mother whispering into the phone from the kitchen.

"She hasn't been down since this morning. What time is her patrol," Sue whispered. "Okay, I'll try to get her out of the house. Thanks Sam. Bye."

"Talking to Sam about me now huh," Leah asked smugly as she walked down the steps.

Sue placed her hand over her chest. Leah had obviously startled her. "He was just telling me you have patrol later on. You should get out of the house today honey. Get some fresh air?"

"You have no right to talk to Sam about me behind my back. What the hell can he do for me," Leah asked, slamming her hands on the kitchen table.

"Calm down. We're all worried about you, it's okay for people to actually care about you Leah. Stop pushing us out," Sue cried.

Leah let out an ear piercing scream. "I'm not pushing anyone away. I just want to be left alone!"

"Leah please stop closing up on me. I'm your mother, you can talk to me about anything," Sue replied, pulling Leah into a tight hug. "Talk to me."

"There's nothing to talk about. I'm fine," Leah replied a little too calmly. Sue was worried about her daughter's odd behavior. Leah had been extra snappy but then there would be a calm after the storm. It wasn't like Leah at all.

"Why didn't you tell me about her," Leah asked.

"About who?"

"Linda. She was there in that dungeon," Leah continued. "Why didn't you tell me about her?"

Sue closed her eyes and sighed. She knew that Leah would find out one day. This talk was long overdue. "Let's talk."

**Old Quil's House**

"I knew it would only be so long before you came to see me," Old Quil said as Jacob sat on the front steps of the porch. "Your father told me what's been happening with you."

"Yea, it's freaking me out a bit. It's like I can't stay away from her and I always feel like I'm supposed to protect her," Jacob explained.

"How long have you been feeling this way," Old Quil asked.

"Ever since that pack showed up on our land. Every time Anthony came around I wanted to rip his head off for touching or talking to her. I don't like this feeling." Jacob placed his head in his hands. "I feel like I should be checking on her at this second. What's happening to me?"

"It's time for you to claim what's yours," Old Quil began.

"What? She's not some piece of meat."

Old Quil continued, "I'm talking about your position as Alpha. It's time you step up to the plate. We've all been curious as to why Leah was the only woman to shift. I've been doing some research on our history and I finally have an idea why she phased."

"Have you talked to her about this?"

"Oh no, she wouldn't take this information too well and I don't think now is a good time. Throughout the years there has never been the proper mate for the Alpha in our tribe. He needed a female that could create the strongest wolves but she never phased. I never knew I would live to see the first female phase, Leah is very important to this tribe Jacob. You both are actually. The tribe finally has the perfect pair to make us so much stronger," Qld Quil explained.

Jacob's eyes widened once he realized what Quil was talking about. "I hope you're not going where I think you are. Leah would never do…I would…no."

"In due time you'll think differently."

Jacob hopped to his feet. "I don't think I will think differently anytime soon. I don't want to be connected to someone just because of fluky magic. I'm sure Leah doesn't want to either."

"It's nothing like an imprint Jacob. I'm just telling you why you're feeling the way you are. Nothing's promised, remember that son," Old Quil replied, standing to his feet.

"Huh?"

"Nothing's promised. Keep that in mind." He opened the screen door and stepped inside.

"What do you mean," Jacob asked.

"You'll see. It was nice speaking with you," Old Quil slowly shut the front door in Jacob's face. _Nothing's promised. _

**Leah's House **

Sue put everything on the table for Leah. Seth came in from his patrol and Sue explained the Linda situation to him. He didn't take the news as easy as his sister and Sue wasn't surprised. Seth looked up to his father and he felt like both of his parents had betrayed him by keeping secrets.

"He'll come around," Leah said as Seth stomped up the stairs to his room. "He can't stay angry for too long. Remember he has to eat."

Sue laughed at her daughter's failed attempt at humor. She knew Leah was just trying to make her feel better. "Thanks Leah. I'm so sorry for keeping that from you guys. I didn't want to cause any more pain."

"I'm going on patrol. I need some fresh air," Leah said.

Sue watched Leah from the kitchen window. Leah didn't take off towards the woods like she usually did when she would patrol. Instead she took the road towards Jacob's house. Sue rushed to the phone and called Old Quil who answered on the first ring.

"She's on her way…you already told him? Well she headed over there and I hope he doesn't let her know what we found…she'll freak out, now isn't the time." Sue crossed her fingers as she watched Leah disappear down the road.

…

Jacob's sleep was disturbed by a light knock on his window. Who would be brave enough to wake him up at this time of night? He didn't get enough rest as it was, so someone had a lot of nerve waking him up.

He reached over and ripped the window open. "What?" He snapped to the figure standing outside. Jacob rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "What are you doing Leah?"

"Get up, we have patrol," Leah replied curtly.

"No we don't."

"I call patrol. Let's go," Leah whispered so she wouldn't wake Billy, who was in the next room. Jacob groaned and grabbed a pair of sweatpants from the floor.

Jacob followed Leah as she walked to the clearing that the pack used as a meeting place. She sat on the grass and pulled her legs to her chest.

"I thought we were patrolling," Jacob asked. When Leah didn't answer him, he joined her.

They sat in silence for five minutes before Leah began talking. "I'm scared."

Jacob had never heard the word scared come out of her mouth. Leah Clearwater was anything but scared. "Of what?"

Leah chuckled. "The person I'm becoming."

Jacob didn't know how to respond to her reply. What was he supposed to say to her? He did the only thing he thought was appropriate to do when a friend was hurting. He placed a hand around Leah's shoulders and pulled her into his chest. He could feel her tense up and pull back a bit but she finally relaxed. His phone vibrated from his pocket. _Bella._ Jacob did something that was even surprising to him…he pushed ignore.

**Hey ya'll! Sorry for the long wait. School has gotten very crazy since it's very close to the end of semester and graduation. Graduation! I'm super excited! But I've missed writing for enjoyment and I'm glad I finally finished this chapter I started weeks ago. I've written 4 papers in the past three weeks and trust me, I would have rather been writing for my stories. As always, thank you for the wonderful reviews! I appreciate the love! **

**I planned to discuss the Anthony situation in this chapter but as you see that didn't happen. I wanted to focus more on Blackwater than the other stuff in this chapter. It was as loaded with Blackwater as I planned, but I didn't want to rush things. Remember these two hated each other at one time. Linda and Anthony WILL be discussed in the next chapter though. And Dream Catcher will be updated soon. **


	13. Closer

**I don't own Twilight or the characters! Stephanie Meyer owns it all! The song lyrics belong to Kings of Leon. **

_**Stranded in this spooky town.**_

_**Stoplights are swaying and the phone lines are down.**_

**Jacob's POV**

Today was Bella's big day. Time was ticking and it wouldn't be long before she was a vampire, my natural born enemy. She would always be my best friend, which is why I had to tell her good-bye. With her being a leech I wouldn't spend much time around her anymore. I still didn't understand what was so appealing about being a blood sucker or why Bella wanted to throw her life away. Did she not have any dreams? Did she really want to be frozen in the same stage of life forever? The Cullen's had graduated from high school over and over again. That doesn't seem like much of a life to me and I don't think Bella chose it for herself. She was probably brainwashed by that control freak she called her boyfriend. Edward had even taken it as far as disabling her car so she couldn't come see me. If that didn't scream control freak I don't know what does. Bella wasn't the same girl anymore. She wasn't as carefree as she was when she was around me and the pack. Leah kept saying she was being brainwashed and I'm beginning to believe that. At least I could say that I tried to pull her out of her trance, I did all I could do for her.

"We're going as your backup," Embry said.

"I don't need backup. I'm good," I replied, buttoning the last button on my dress shirt.

"We're just there for your benefit Jake. No funny business," Sam added.

Everyone was doubting my ability to keep my cool at the wedding. I wasn't even mad about the situation anymore. Why be mad over a girl who didn't want me? The only thing I could do was let her go, maybe we would both be happier after tonight.

"You sure you want to go to this thing," Quil asked.

"You guys need to stop sweating it. I'll be fine and I don't need any backup. I'm sure the Cullens aren't going to jump at me for being there. She did invite me after all and I'm just going to tell her bye," I exclaimed.

Leah looked between the room full of wolves as she entered the living room. "I'm not going as backup. I refuse to be near that abomination of a wedding."

"We're a pack Leah," Sam replied.

"And I'm not going near that wedding. Trust me, it's for the best. If I go anywhere near her I might rip her head off," Leah said dryly. And she was right. She would probably rip Bella a part because she was so angry with her. For the past few weeks, I had been spending a lot of time with Leah after the kidnapping ordeal. I had found that Leah wasn't as bitchy as she put off to be. She was actually quite funny and nice when she wanted to be. Her attitude was changing a little bit but I could tell that something was still bothering her. She still wasn't talking about what happened in the dungeon and I didn't expect that any time soon.

"You guys have fun babysitting," Leah added before leaving the room once again.

"What's with her," Jared asked, shaking his head. "She's as sweet as a button today but tomorrow she'll be back to evil old Leah."

"She'll be fine, just don't piss her off and give her some space," I said. "Okay I'm ready to go. My dad and Sue should already be heading that way."

"I can't believe you're going through with this Jake. You're one brave soul. I've got your back though," Embry added, patting my shoulder.

"Thanks Embry." I cracked the door open to Rachel's room. "Leah we're leaving now. You sure you don't wanna to go?"

Leah yanked the door open. "Hell yea I'm sure. Just try to behave while I'm not there."

"I'll try to be on my best behavior. I'll call you if I have any trouble," I replied.

"Like she could help you. She would just cause more problems. Behave yourself," Rachel chimed in.

…**.**

The wedding was just like I imagined it to be. When the Cullens had a wedding they went all out for it. Their entire backyard was transformed into a fantasy land for Bella. The ground was covered in white petals and a path was made for the bride and her wedding party. Silky ribbons were hanging from the trees and there were about one hundred chairs in perfect alignment that filled the backyard. Alice was probably the master mind behind all of this. Didn't she know that her soon to be sister-in-law didn't like the glitz and glam?

"This is really beautiful," Sue said.

"It's a little much if you ask me," I replied. "Bella doesn't even know all these people."

Seth rubbed his growling stomach. "I hope they hurry up so we can get some wedding cake. I'm starving."

"Screw the cake, I want real food," I added.

The wedding music started as the Esme and Carlisle made their way down the aisle. Esme nodded her head and smiled at everyone they passed. Jasper and Alice were next followed by Emmett and Rosalie. Surprisingly, Rosalie's scowl was replaced with a warm smile. She was smiling as though she was at her own wedding. Edward was the last to walk down the aisle before the music changed to an even softer tune. Everyone stood to their feet as Bella was escorted by Charlie down the aisle. I could tell she was nervous because her chin was quivering along with her hands. Bella walked slower than usual, probably trying to keep her balance. She was notorious for being clumsy and it wouldn't surprise me if she fell right on her face. Bella glanced in my direction and her eyes widened. I'm guessing she was surprised that I had come to her wedding when I had been ignoring her for days. She mouthed 'thank you' and continued down the aisle, finally meeting Edward at the end. Charlie kissed the top of her hand and handed her off. I could tell he wasn't happy about his daughter marrying at such a young age, but there was nothing he could do to stop it. Little did he know, his daughter was marrying a dead man and soon she would be dead too. I grimaced at the thought and took my seat.

By the end of the vows, Seth was lightly snoring on Sue's shoulder and I was on my way to dreamland. Edward had come up with the 1,000 ways to love Bella Swan and I was sick of listening by reason ten. My dad bumped my shoulder, jolting me from power nap.

"You were snoring," he whispered. Edward glared at me from the altar and continued his vows. Did anyone really care to hear any of this? Was Bella even listening or had she been staring at me the whole time? She smiled and turned back to Edward.

…**..**

"When are they going to cut the cake," Seth whined. "I could use about five pieces right now."

"You have to save some for the rest of the guest," Sue replied, patting Seth on the back.

"It's not like their family will be eating any," I added. What would a family of vampires do with cake?

I could see Bella and Edward making their way to our table. Bella was holding on to his arm for dear life because she could barely walk in her heels.

"Jacob could we talk to you," Edward asked.

"It won't take long." Bella smiled widely and tightened her grip on Edward's arm.

"Sure, sure." I followed them to a secluded spot on the side of the house. "What's up?"

"I just wanted some private time with you. To say good-bye and everything," Bella replied. I could see a glimmer of sadness in her eyes as she smiled.

"Seriously?"

"Yea, I'm allowing her to say bye. Well she wanted to," Edward answered. Allowed her? It was already too late for Bella. Edward had her wrapped tightly around his finger and she had fallen under his spell. "I'll leave you two alone."

"So he's letting you say goodbye huh?"

"Don't say it like that Jake," Bella sighed. I sensed that she didn't want to argue and dropped it. "I see you found a shirt that fits." She pulled at the hem of my dress shirt.

"I haven't grown any this past month so I got lucky. So…is he turning you tonight or tomorrow," I asked.

Bella's gaze fell down to her hands as she twirled her wedding band around her finger. "We're going to wait for a little bit."

"Oh. I guess that means you're postponing your honeymoon until then."

Bella never looked back up. "Um…no we're leaving tonight."

My breath hitched in my throat and my body began to tremble. "Whoa you aren't seriously thinking of having a normal honeymoon with that leech are you?"

"Don't call him that Jake and yes, I'm going to have a honeymoon the same way anyone else would. I'm a married woman," Bella replied.

"Are you out of your fucking mind Bella? You do realize you didn't marry a normal man right? He'll kill you before he can change you," I yelled.

"It's really none of your business. I'm married, it's what married people do," Bella replied. She didn't seem too sure about her answer which led me to believe that she was afraid. She didn't want Edward to know that though because he would refuse to change her if he knew her true feelings. I knew her well enough to see the fear in her eyes and hear the uncertainty in her voice.

"Listen to me Bella, you don't have to do this. Think about what you're risking. This isn't just about you," I urged.

She wasn't budging on her decision. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for everything I put you through and I'm sorry for leading you on. I should have been more mature about the whole thing and I hope you can forgive me someday." Tears began to roll down her rosy cheeks. This would be the last time I would see the color in her face before she became one of _them. _"I wish you could understand why I want this so badly. No one gets it, not even Edward."

"It's not too late to back out of it. You haven't even experienced life just yet and now you want to throw it away. That's ridiculous Bella and I'll never understand why you're doing it. I will never accept you as a leech. I'm sorry that I even let myself fall this deep when I knew all along what you would do." Bella's mouth opened but I cut her off before she could speak. "No you listen to me. I can no longer protect you if you're willing to throw your life away for some dead guy. What was the point in dragging me along when you knew it would be him? Huh? You know what don't even answer that because I know you don't know."

Edward was in front of me within seconds. "Jacob calm down."

"Don't you fucking tell me to calm down. You've brainwashed her and fed her these little fantasy stories. She doesn't even think for herself anymore because of you and your bloodsucking family!"

"Jake please," Bella cried.

"I'm sorry Bella but I can't do this anymore. I'm done trying to save you from yourself. You can go through with this if you want to but I won't be around to see it. And you…how can you let this happen? If you loved her so much why won't you stop her? Instead you make a compromise with her just so you can shut her up. I should rip you to pieces but your wife is stopping me. I know she would hate me forever if I did that. "

"I haven't talked her into anything Jacob. I've been trying to talk her out of it for the longest and…"

"No! You haven't tried a damn thing! If you didn't want this for her you would leave and never come back. I was the one who put her back together after you left town. Remember that? Of course you don't because you and your family are nothing but selfish, manipulative motherfuckers!"

"Jacob calm down," Sam ordered as the pack emerged from the woods.

"Stay out of this Sam!"

"She's no longer our concern," Sam replied as the Embry and Quil grabbed my arms.

"Let go of me! I'm good." I easily yanked my arms from their hands. "How about this Cullen, I'll give you options. You break that treaty and change her, I'll kill you."

"Jacob no," Bella gasped.

"Those weren't options..." Quil began.

"Shut up Quil, now isn't the time."

"Jake you know…" Edward started before I cut him off abruptly.

"Change her and die. The treaty is still intact," I explained.

"No it's not, they are no longer a threat to us," Sam replied.

"The treaty is still intact," I repeated in a deeper voice. Sam's chest seemed to deflate as my voice carried through the woods.

"What the hell just happened," Jared asked.

"I think someone just claimed their role as Alpha," Embry exclaimed.

…

**Leah's POV**

I had the house all to myself which meant I didn't have to deal with my mother's constant nagging about my behavior. Everyone thought I was acting strange after the kidnapping. The constant questioning and checking on me was what drove me crazy. Sure I was a little shaken up by the whole thing, but I was more bothered by Landon's comments about my baby. The sonogram picture and seeing Sam on a daily basis was a reminder of what I had done. I had killed my child when I became a monster and Landon agreed. He was going to give me a second chance at the baby thing but I wasn't going to let him experiment with my uterus. There was no way that a baby could live inside of me because I was a freak of nature. No one had ever agreed with me before about what happened with my baby, but I was feeling worse about it since Landon had also blamed me for the loss. I kept trying to push the thought to the back of my mind but it was haunting me worse than ever. The nightmares were starting back up and they were scarier than they were before. Landon's words would stick with me for a long time because the miscarriage was such a soft spot for me.

A loud knock at the door interrupted my thoughts. "Leah, it's me, Linda. Open up."

I shot up from the couch and ran to the door. "Linda what the hell are you doing here? I thought you were….I mean I thought he killed you." The rain began to fall harder, soaking Linda's hair and clothes. "Come on in out of the rain."

"I've been trying to find you for the last few days. Anthony told me you lived here so I walked," Linda said.

"Anthony? He's still alive?"

"Yea, he went back home though. He's the one who got me out of the dungeon and set me free. He doesn't want anything to do with me now that I'm damaged goods," Linda explained.

"So he just went back home with no problem? He didn't say anything about me or his crazy ass brother," I asked.

"Nope. He let me out and told me where to find you and your mom. I wanted to meet her face to face, is she around." Linda looked around the living room frantically.

"Um no. She's at a wedding and won't be back until later on this evening. You want something to drink?"

"Oh no, I'm fine, thanks though. Can I use your bathroom," Linda asked.

"Sure, it's down this hall and to the right," I replied, pointing down the hall.

She sat her purse and cell phone on the coffee table. "Thanks!" It was a little strange how she had a cell phone and purse but she was in a dungeon for years. The phone began to buzz. I wasn't the nosy type but I could read the text message from where I was standing. _I'm coming back for Leah in two days. Just make sure you keep up the act. I love you.-Anthony _

What the actual fuck? I snatched the phone from the table and thumbed through the rest of the text messages. Linda had been texting Anthony for the last few days. Apparently she was part of his next plan since the first one didn't work.

"Wooo I really had to go," Linda said, walking back into the living room. Her eyes widened when she spotted the phone in my hand. "What are you doing?"

"The question is what are you doing? So you're part of his next plan? Too bad I didn't fall for that you crazy bitch. What are the rest of his plans," I asked, slowly closing the space between us.

"That was none of your business."

"None of my business? Are you fucking kidding me! I knew something was off about you but I didn't think you would be working with the same guy who betrayed you. Were you in on the whole Landon thing too?"

Linda held her hands up and backed into a corner. "Leah please listen."

"Were you in on it!?"

Her face fell and she slumped to the floor. "Yes."

"You have two seconds to get the hell out of my house. And tell that little friend of yours that he can try to come back if he wants to. I'll have my pack tear him to pieces," I spat.

"Would you just listen to…"

"You don't have to explain a damn thing to me because I saw everything I needed to see. Get out!"

"Leah…"

Enough was enough. I grabbed her hair and began dragging her towards the front door. "Get out!" I threw the trash onto the porch and slammed the door. "Oh and here's the rest of your shit." I opened the door and threw the cell phone and purse out.

"Leah!" Linda continued to bang on the door for a few minutes and then the knocking stopped. I could hear her gather her things and walk off the porch. Good riddance.

_**1 hour later **_

Seth and Embry came running into the house with the rest of the pack behind them.

"What the hell is wrong with you," I asked as Seth paced the living room.

"He's gone!"

"Who's gone," I pressed.

"Jacob ran off after he got into a fight with Sam. He went all Alpha on him and Sam went postal," Embry explained.

"Then the little fucker disappeared and we can't find him. We thought he would have come here since you two have been hanging out," Paul stated.

"I'm going to find him," I replied.

"No you're not," Sam ordered.

"You can't tell me what to do Uley. He's probably upset and doesn't need to be out there by himself." I pushed pass him causing him to get angrier.

"You will not leave this house Leah. It's getting dangerous out there. You're not leaving and that's a command," Sam said through clenched teeth.

The command didn't leave a heavy weight on my chest like it usually did. "It's just a little storm. You will not tell me what to do…and that's an order." Sam cowered under the weight of my words as I took off into the storm. Jacob had been there for me in my darkest moment and I wasn't going to leave him alone in this.

I stripped out of my clothes, tied them to my ankle and sprinted into the woods. I ran for hours, sniffing for Jacob's scent until he appeared in my head.

"_Lee?"_

"_Where the hell are you?"_

"_I'll show you." _

I finally caught up with the runaway wolf after running for several minutes

"Took you long enough," Jacob said as I emerged out of the woods.

"Well you ran so far away and it took me a while to catch up. Mind telling me what's going on?"

He pulled me into a bone crushing hug. "She's gone."

"Okay, you knew she was changing soon. What's the big surprise?"

"No surprises." He whispered into my ear. "I had to get out of there before I killed Sam."

"I heard you two had a fight." Jacob nodded. "I have something to tell you by the way."

"Please tell me it's good news. I don't think I can handle any more bad news today," Jacob replied.

"Anthony is…"

"Did I hear my name?" A tall figure emerged from the shadows of the trees.

"What the fuck are you doing here," Jacob asked, pushing me behind him.

"Oh hello there Mr. Black. I think you know what I'm doing here. I came back to claim my prize," Anthony snarled.

**I apologize for the wait! I finally finished this chapter today after starting on it a week ago. I graduated from college on Saturday so I had a pretty eventful weekend. Thank you so much for all the support! I am so happy I continued this although it was originally a one-shot. **

**This chapter wasn't really eventful but it was needed to set up the next chapter. **


	14. On Call

**I don't own Twilight or the characters! Stephanie Meyer owns it all! The lyrics belong to Kings of Leon. **

_**I'm gon' brawl, so be there.**__**  
**__**One for all, I'll be there.**_

_**Leah's POV**_

Jacob held me steady against his back as Anthony began to approach us. "Your prize? Oh you must be talking about the ass whooping I've been wanting to give you for the longest."

"Don't be stupid Black. You know what I'm here for. You're hiding her behind your back like you own her or something," Anthony hissed.

Jacob chuckled. "She doesn't belong to anyone and that includes you. Why don't you just get the hell out of here before things end badly."

"You should take his advice Anthony. Things will end badly if you decide to do something stupid," I added.

"How about you just shut the fuck up and get your ass over here," Anthony retorted.

Jacob's grip on my hip tightened as I lunged forward. "Who the hell do you think you're talking to?"

"You're only making the situation worse. I'd advise you to watch how you talk to her," Jacob replied.

"Hand her over and we'll be done here."

"Do you seriously think it would be that easy? Oh I'll just hand my packmate over with no problem. Get the hell outta here." The hand on my hip began to shake. Some shit was about to go down.

Anthony cackled. The sly son of a bitch actually thought this whole thing was comical. That only pissed Jacob off more because he hated for someone to laugh in his face. Anthony's best interest was to get the hell out of dodge because Jacob was about to snap.

"Since when did you start caring about her? When did any of you begin to care? Answer me that because I'm slightly confused. At one time you all treated her like shit, like she didn't mean a damn thing to you, now you're her protector? None of you started to care until I came around and threatened to take her away," Anthony said. "Is is because of your little Alpha ego?"

"You have to be the most arrogant son of a bitch I've ever met," I interjected. "What goes on in our pack is our business. Who the fuck are you ?"

"Tell me something Leah. Do they know that you cry over your dead baby every night? You cry yourself to sleep, do they know that? Do they ever greet you with a good morning instead of an insult? This pack doesn't give a shit about you. Especially this little guy right here." Anthony pointed to Jacob. "Just a few weeks ago he was pining after someone else and you mean to tell me he's over her already? Nah, I don't think it's that easy. He's probably using you to get over her."

Jacob turned to face me. "I don't want you in this fight."

"I hope you're not telling me to leave you to fend for yourself once shit pops off." I took offense to the fact that Jacob didn't want me to get in the middle of the ensuing fight. Anthony had caused me hell and I was going to get some licks in too. Did Jacob honestly think I would sit this one out?

Jacob sighed. "This isn't your fight."

"The hell if it isn't my fight. This motherfucker isn't getting away this time. I'll be your flank; I'm not sitting out like a damsel in distress. I'm not Bella," I spat. Jacob closed his eyes and shook his head in defeat.

"You're the most hard headed person I know. Why do you have to be so difficult woman," Jacob asked, turning back to Anthony.

"Admit it Jake, you guys didn't start paying attention to her until I came along. What if I never came around? Could you say you would care now," Anthony pressed.

"Shut the fuck up Anthony!"

Anthony chuckled at Jacob's visible frustration. "I could have had her all to myself. Just one bite would have marked her forever. I could have had my way with her every night."

"Shut up Anthony," Jacob warned again.

Anthony continued, "Every night I would have been banging her fucking walls down."

That's all it took before shredded clothes fluttered to the ground. The two wolves charged at each other and I could hear the gnashing of teeth as I phased into wolf form.

"_Leah stay out of this! Go back home," Jacob said. _

"_I'm not leaving you here. This is my fight too," I replied. _

_Jacob and Anthony began circling each other slowly, both of them baring their teeth. Jacob glanced in my direction and threw his head to the side, signaling for me to go back home. _

"_I'm not leaving!"_

"_This is an Alpha's fight, you don't belong here Leah. Go back home before you get hurt," he ordered._

_I didn't budge. I could care less about what Jacob wanted me to do at this time; Anthony wasn't going to die without me getting my revenge on him as well. _

"_Fuck!" Anthony attempted to take a swipe at Jacob's side but missed. "He fights like a girl."Jacob bit into the smaller wolf's side, causing him to yelp in pain. Jacob: 1 Anthony:0 _

_The two wolves began circling each other once more, this time their stance was more aggressive. I waited for my moment to jump into the fight. Anthony lunged at Jacob, but missed once again. Of course this only angered him more because he was losing after talking so much shit. Right now he appeared to be all bark and no bite. Jacob lowered his body to the ground, preparing himself for the next attack. Obviously Anthony's fighting style was different because he remained straight up. _

"_Come on you son of a bitch," Jacob growled as Anthony snarled. "This fight is too easy Lee, I think I can handle it"_

"_I'm still sticking around. Sorry bud," I replied, wagging my tail. I sniffed the air. Something smelt really odd and it wasn't a vampire. I looked towards the trees and spotted another wolf charging towards me._

"_Shit," I exclaimed as I prepared myself for battle. "Who the fuck is this?"_

_The wolf bared its teeth, a loud growl escaping its chest. "I'm assuming it's a bitch, I don't see balls." I crouched down to the ground as the wolf closed in. As soon as it was close enough, I lunged forward and landed on top of my prey. I could hear a loud cracking of bones come from my right side and Jacob howled in pain. That would be a pain in the ass in the morning. Jacob was swiping at Anthony's belly. I could smell the blood leaking from Jacob's opponent. My opponent was struggling under my front paws as I dug my teeth into its neck. It finally got the strength to pounce back to its feet, sending me flying backwards to the ground. I bounced back up but not fast enough to avoid a swipe to my face. "Fuck! You son of a bitch!" That was enough to get me riled up. _

"_Fight back Leah," Jacob yelled. I circled the brown wolf, preparing to make my next mood. It attempted to take another swipe at my face, but I caught its paw between my teeth and held on for dear life. A loud howl erupted from Jacob's end and I could hear gurgling noises coming from Anthony's throat. The wolf in front of me began to fall to the ground, its body quivering under my weight. The wolf body slowly began to phase back into human form as Anthony's did the same. _

"_Linda!?" I phased back into my human form. _

"You fucking bitch," I yelled and began punching on the body below me. I could hear her breathing slow as I pounded into her head over and over again. Blood splattered on my chest and abdomen as I continued to beat Linda's head into the ground. Jacob was yelling obscenities and kicking Anthony in the abdomen.

"He's gone," Jacob yelled. "Leah?"

"You stupid bitch! You thought you had me huh?" I could feel Jacob pulling me away from Linda's bloody body.  
"Put me down Jacob or you're next!"

"Yea right. She's dead, you killed her okay? Leah stop punching or I'll kick your ass too," Jacob warned, grabbing my arms.

"I didn't even get very many licks in because you killed him first. Damn you Jake," I complained.

"Dammit would you calm your ass down? My fucking shoulder is hanging out of socket," Jacob yelled.

"Well get your dick off my back so I can fix your arm."

Jacob yanked away from me. "Oh hell no, you're not fixing anything. I can pop it in place myself."

Anthony's fingers began to wiggle. I quickly ran over to his limp body and kicked him as hard as I could in the head. His breathing slowed once again and finally stopped after his final gasp for air.

"Now let me see that arm of yours before we throw out the trash," I said, approaching Jacob who was shaking his head. "Stop being such a baby and let me see." I grabbed his injured arm and place it on my shoulder. "My mom used to always pop my shoulder back into place. I'm double jointed so it always used to pop out."

"Double jointed huh," Jacob asked as I popped his shoulder back into place. "Shit fuck motherfucker hell!"

"Interesting choice of words there Black. Make another suggestive comment and I'll pop it back out." I looked at the two bodies that were sprawled out on the ground. "What are we going to do with them?"

"Leave them for the bugs and animals," Jacob suggested.

"Then someone will find them and they'll be all over the news. We can dump them in the water down there," I replied, pointing to the body of water under the cliff.

Jacob grabbed Anthony's hand and began dragging him to the edge of the cliff. I followed in suit and watched as Jacob used a strip of his shredded clothes to tie a rock to Anthony's body.

"That little ass rock isn't going to keep his body down," I chuckled. I kicked Linda over the edge and watched as her body crashed into the water. "Looks like we should go home and get some clothes."

"I'm not really ready to go home just yet. I had a pretty heated argument with Sam about what he pulled at Bella's wedding. He's such a pansy when it comes to confrontation."

"Yeah. You see he wasn't here to deal with this shit," I replied.

"We're too far away for them to hear our howls or hear us in their heads. Plus…I'm no longer a part of the pack."

My eyes widened. Was I hearing things or did he say he wasn't a part of the pack anymore? "Wait what?"

"I'm tired of Sam not handling pack business like it should be handled. Edward and the rest of the Cullens deserved to be torn to shreds for breaking the treaty. He has the nerve to give Bella a regular honeymoon," Jacob explained.

"So he's changing her on the honeymoon?"

"He'll have no choice to do it once he's killed her. I don't understand why she's doing this. What does she see in a dead guy," he asked.

"I wish I could tell you but Bella isn't like normal teen girls. Maybe you need help picking better friends. But stop trying to change the subject. So what the hell are you going to do now that you're a free man?"

"I'm planning on killing the Cullens while Bella and Edward are away. The mind reader can't read my mind while he's thousands of miles away," Jacob said.

"You can't do that by yourself Jake."

Jacob grabbed my shoulders. "Well I plan on it. After you clean yourself up you need to go back home. Don't tell anyone about my plans because I don't want any of Sam's shit about the Cullens not being a threat."

"I'm not going back if you're not coming with me," I barked.

"Oh yes you will."

"Jacob you're out of your damn mind," I yelled.

"I order you to go back home Leah! You can't be here with me. What I'm about to do is dangerous and I don't want you to get hurt," Jacob exclaimed.

"I'll go home to get us some clothes but that's it. I'm not letting you do something like this without help." Jacob opened his mouth to speak but was quickly shut down. I wasn't going to let him convince me that him doing this alone was a great idea. "You're not doing this by yourself. You know how much I hate the Cullens so I'll gladly help you."

"No you'll go home and stay there until all this is over."

"Is that an order Alpha," I asked.

Jacob sighed. "I'm not Alpha. I'm not leading anyone, I'm just going off on my own for a bit."

"Whatever you say, I'll be back in a bit." I replied. I could hear Jacob grumbling under his breath as I phased and ran off in the other direction.

…**.**

I ran to the back door of my house, hoping I could escape the eyes of my horny pack brothers. My plan was thrown off kilter once I ran into Paul and Jared.

"Um what the fuck are you doing running around naked," Jared asked.

"I kind of lost it when I saw Jacob and we got into a fight," I lied.

Paul sniffed my neck and turned up his nose. "Why do you smell like that? And where is Jake?"

"Jake is no longer a member of this pack," Sam spoke. "He broke off from us a few minutes ago. I felt it when I phased. He's no longer connected to us."

"Fucking traitor," Paul growled. "I always knew something was off with that kid."

"What do we do now," Jared asked.

"He'll come back eventually; he can't stay away for too long. He's probably just throwing a temper tantrum because I won't let him have his way," Sam insisted. "Whose scent is that on you Leah?"

"None of your fucking business Uley. Can I go get some clothes so Paul can stop ogling my titties?" Sam stepped aside, letting me through the back door. "Thank you."

I ran up to my room and stuffed all the clothes I could find in a bag. I quickly threw on a pair of sweats and a tank top. I snuck into Seth's room and stole a couple of his shirts and shorts. Hopefully Seth wouldn't get too pissed off about his missing clothes.

"What are you doing Leah," Seth asked from the doorway. Shit.

"I'll explain later, I can't right now. Just keep your mouth shut and don't tell anyone about anything you saw."

Seth grabbed the bag from me. "No tell me what's going on."

"I'm on a mission right now, I can't tell you. I'll explain everything later," I replied. I snatched the bag back and hurried out of his room. He followed me down the steps and out the front door.

"Where are you going Leah," Seth questioned.

"Shhhhh! They'll hear you. I'm just going away for a little bit. I'll be back once this is all over."

Seth grabbed my arm and forced me to turn around. "You're not leaving until you tell me what's going on."

"Jake is going to kill the Cullens. I trust that you'll keep that information to yourself. I love you. Don't come looking for me," I said, kissing Seth's forehead. I phased into wolf form, picked the bag up and ran towards the woods. I could feel the pull in my chest as I separated from the pack I was born into.

"_Leah I told you to stay out of this," Jacob groaned. _

"_I told you that my loyalty belongs with you. You're actually trying to help the tribe and the people of Forks." _

"_I'm not anyone's leader so get that out of your pretty little head." _

"_You lied to me about going off on your own. Sam told me you just did it a few minutes ago. What's that about? He isn't too happy with you and I bet he comes after us," I replied. _

"_Fuck Sam." _

…**..**

Once I reached my destination I phased back and took a pair of shorts and a shirt from the bag. I wasn't going to ruin this outfit since it would be one of the only pieces of clothing I would have for awhile.

"Seth's shirt may be too small for you, but his shorts should fit," I said, throwing the bag to Jacob.

"Thanks. You know you can't stay here right," Jacob replied. "Wanna take a dip in the water?"

"Ewww there are dead people in there. Hell no," I exclaimed.

Jacob palmed his forehead. "Not there, I found a creek not too far from here. I need to clean this blood off and your face looks like hell."

I didn't even think about the dried up blood on my face and chest. My body looked like a murder scene. "I'm surprised the pack didn't freak out. I told Paul and Jared that I got into a fight with you."

"Looks like you lost." Jacob chuckled. "Phase out." He pulled a pair of shorts from the bag and tied them to his leg. I stripped out of my shirt and shorts, tied them to my ankle and phased into wolf form. I followed Jacob through the trees and to a small creek that glistened in the moonlight. "The water's nice and cool." Jacob grabbed my hand and helped me down the small hill that led to the creek. The water felt cool against my warm skin and it was a relief to my tensed muscles.

"This water feels wonderful." I dipped my face into the water and began scrubbing the dried blood off my cheeks. "Seth wasn't too happy with me when I left. I told him to keep it to himself but I doubt he'll be able to do that on patrol."

Jacob glared at me. I didn't keep his attack a secret like he asked but Seth wasn't going to take no for an answer. "I'm ready for Sam if he decides to come for me. Actually I know he'll try it because I disobeyed his Alpha order." Sam had always been the power hungry type. When someone threatened his power he would do anything to get back at them. Sam would make Jacob pay for disobeying his Alpha command although I had faith that Jacob could kick his ass.

"I'll take Paul, he's all bark and no bite anyways," I joked.

"You won't be taking anyone because you're not in it. I'm letting you stay with me for a few days and it ends there. I'm going about all this by myself," Jacob ordered once again.

"And like I said before, I'm helping you. I broke away from the pack. There's no going back for me," I spat.

"Whatever Leah." Jacob rinsed his arms off and dunked his head under water. "You missed a spot." His hand landed on my cheek and he softly scrubbed it with his thumb. Our eyes met and it was the first time I saw the youthfulness behind them. When we phased we all were forced to become adults. For the past few weeks there was a hardness about Jacob, but in this one moment I could see him soften. My face inched closer to his. Before I could fathom what was happening his lips were on mine.

**Sorry this chapter is so short. It is more of a filler for what's happening in the next few chapters. I would say there are about five or six more chapters left before the epilogue. I'm in the midst of outlining the rest of the story. **

**So what do you all think? Will Jacob allow Leah to stay in his pack? What will Sam think about all of this? Will shit finally hit the fan with the Cullens and the pack? Let me know your predictions. You never know, you may be right. What the hell was going on with Anthony and Linda's death? Was it a little odd to you? **

**Thanks for reviewing the last chapter by the way! I love reading what you all think. I plan to update this story once a week until it's over. I hope to do the same with Dream Catchers. We'll see how I can keep up with that. LOL Thanks again! **


	15. Read All About It

**I don't own Twilight or the characters! Stephanie Meyer owns it all! The lyrics belong to Emeli Sande!**

_**You've got the words to change a nation but you're biting your tongue.**_

_**You've spent a lifetime stuck in silence afraid you'll say something wrong.**_

**Leah's POV**

His lips moved against mine slowly, as if he was unsure about whether I would kick his ass or kiss him back. I wrapped my arms around his neck, pushing my body closer to his. His tongue slid past my teeth and melted against mine. _He didn't care before I came along. _Anthony's words rang through my head like a warning bell. As the words continued to wrack my brain, I quickly pulled away from the kiss. This wasn't right. Jacob was only kissing me because our adrenaline was sky rocketing.

I could tell Jacob was blushing, even in the darkest part of the woods. "Sorry."

"It's fine," I replied curtly. I could still taste the cake or whatever sweets he ate on my lips. I dipped my head under the water one more time before climbing out of the creek. Maybe we would forget about this in the morning. If we didn't, I wouldn't be the one to bring it up.

We decided to get some sleep and go over our plans to kill the Cullens in the morning. I couldn't believe that I actually broke away from Sam's pack and soon I would be killing the monsters that made me this way.

"You sleep," Jacob asked.

"Nope."

He turned to lie on his back. "I'm sorry about earlier. I guess I got a little carried away."

"No hard feelings. I was in on it too," I replied.

"Old Quil told me this would happen soon and I didn't want to hear it," Jacob began. "He was telling me that we sort of belong together or something. I guess because you're the only female and I'm the true alpha. We're supposed to be the Alpha pair to make the tribe stronger or some shit like that. I'm assuming that's why I had the urge to kiss you. Maybe what he said was true. "

Anthony's words were still on repeat in my head and then it finally hit me. As cruel and annoying as Anthony was, he had a point about my pack. They were always teasing me about Sam and Emily, they never seemed to care if my feelings were hurt and all of a sudden everyone was trying to protect me. Now Jacob was telling me that we were meant for each other because we could strengthen the tribe. Everything was beginning to make sense and I could feel my blood boil. I wasn't going to be like the imprints. I refused to be with someone because of tribe magic. That wasn't how relationships worked for me. Who wants someone chosen for them? Is that what love really meant?

I sat up on my elbows. "So all I'm good for is to create pack cubs and be a den mother? Is that what Old Quil meant by all of this?"

I'm assuming Jacob sensed my irritation because he sat up too. "Ever since Anthony and his pack came around I've had this weird feeling. When he came around I had this urge to protect you or rip him to shreds. I went to Old Quil and he said he was doing some research on female shape-shifters and he found some things."

"He's never told me about any of this research," I exclaimed. What kind of trickery was going on behind my back? I was the one who was the she-wolf; I had a right to know the reasons behind my phasing.

"He would have never told me if I never asked. He's still looking, I'm sure there's a better reason Leah," Jacob said with a sigh.

No one ever told me there was any information pertaining to female shape-shifters. When I first phased I was told no one knew how I phased. Now Old Quil suddenly has all the answers to my questions but decided to blabber off to Jacob.

"The tribe has been waiting for you for awhile according to him."

"So you kissed me because of some hocus pocus shit going on with the tribe?" I stood to my feet and brushed myself off. "Please tell me that's your reason so I can kick your ass."

"It's not like that….I…"

"Then what is it like then? I don't want to be like Emily and Rachel. Their stuck to Sam and Paul forever because of imprinting. Are you seriously happy about what Old Quil told you? Because I'm not," I spat.

"He's not even sure what the fuck is going on Leah. Why do you always see the worst in things," Jacob questioned, scrunching his eyebrows together.

"I'm not a pessimist, I'm being realistic."

"Sure, sure," Jacob replied. "I'm going to sleep, good night."

"Good night," I said.

I didn't sleep much because the ground wasn't the most comfortable bed in human or wolf form. For most of the night I didn't sleep because of Jacob's loud snoring. How the hell was he comfortable sleeping on this hard ass ground? If we were going to continue this renegade pack I was going to need a bed. What were we going to do about food? Was this really the best idea? Like many nights, I asked myself too many questions, questions that probably didn't have answers. Most of my questions consisted of why was I chosen to be the female wolf of the pack? What if I wanted to be a unicorn or a lady bug? I chuckled at the childish thought. I didn't choose this life for myself; I couldn't make any choices for myself here lately. Here I was again. _Choiceless._ If I understood Old Quil's theory correctly, Jacob and I were chosen for each other, which was as bad as imprinting. I didn't want to be a victim of imprinting no matter how badly Sam hurt me. I saw what something like imprinting did to the pack. They were like zombies stuck in the Twilight Zone. I saw myself as a strong woman, despite all the shit I had gone through in the last few months, and I couldn't see myself in the same position as Emily and Rachel. Rachel was very much like me, but imprinting was beginning to change her. At first she didn't want anything to do with Paul now she couldn't keep her hands off of him. Imprinting had brainwashed them all to believe they were in love with the other person and that's how I viewed Old Quil's theory. Jacob wasn't a bad guy by far but I refused to be someone's lover without choice.

I couldn't fall asleep without the thoughts of my unborn child picking at my brain. This was part of my routine every night before I could finally drift off into Dreamland. I would think of what it would have been like to hold someone so precious in my arms. Before I figured out what was going on with Sam and Emily, I yearned for her to look like Sam. I wanted to have a piece of him that didn't consist of all the horrible things I thought about when he crossed my mind. Now I thought differently. I didn't want her to have anything that belonged to Samuel Uley. Did my dreams even mean anything? Was the baby growing in my stomach really a girl like the one in my dreams? Of course I would never know and that's what bugged me the most. _Not knowing._ Not knowing what could have been was what kept me awake for most of the night.

…

The next morning we were up bright and early. I picked the twigs and grass out of my hair as Jacob described his plan to kill the Cullens. Since they thought the pack was on their side all the damn time, it would be easy to trick them without the mind reader around. The little pixie bitch wouldn't be able to see a thing because she didn't have visions with us around. It would be easy to kill them because they appeared to be gullible without Edward. Carlisle and Esme were the most compassionate vampires I'd ever seen. They wouldn't hurt a fly and they wouldn't expect us to hurt them, but they had overstayed their welcome. Ever since I phased, I constantly thought about killing those filthy bloodsuckers that had ruined our lives. Why did they have to stay in Forks? Why not live in coffins in someone's basement like the vampires in the movies? The Cullens had caused enough trouble and they needed to suffer the consequences.

"I'll go in first. I'll go in asking about Bella because that's what they'll expect and then you'll come in. We'll spark up a conversation and then attack when I give the signal," Jacob explained.

"And what might that signal be," I asked.

"Hmmmmm maybe a wink or smirk. Make it both," he replied.

"So when are we going to do all this? I hope it doesn't take too long because I plan on leaving La Push when it's all over."

Jacob stopped in his tracks. "Leave La Push? How can you do that?"

"Easy. Just leave. I don't plan on staying a wolf my whole life and there's a lot more to the world than La Push," I answered.

"How long have you been thinking about this?"

"Not long but last night I thought long and hard about it. There's nothing left here and I don't see myself having a future on the Rez. I had many dreams before this wolf thing and I put them on hold. After we kill the Cullens I can control my phasing, eventually stop completely and then I'll leave."

Jacob didn't look pleased with my decision. "So that's it? You're gonna run away from your problems?"

"I'm not running away from anything. I'm trying to grow the hell up and I can't seem to do that here. Like I said, there's nothing here for me anymore." I pulled at the grass and rolled it around in my fingers.

"But…what will you tell Seth and your mom? I don't think they'll agree with this because I sure as hell don't," he barked.

"I don't give a fuck what anyone approves of. I'm doing this for me Jacob and I'm tired of living for other people. The only reason why you're trying to hold on to me is because Old Quil gave you some story about us being soul mates. Or you're using me to get over Bella," I hissed. "I'm not a toy that can be played with and I don't plan on being played again."

Jacob threw his hands up and shook his head. "Are you really repeating that shit Anthony said? He was a fucking psychopath Leah. He didn't know what the hell he was talking about."

"He may have been a psychopath but he made a lot of sense. You guys didn't give two flying fucks about me until he got here. Between that and Old Quil's research I'm overwhelmed by all the love I'm getting," I replied, adding a sarcastic flare on my last statement.

"Whatever Leah." Jacob rolled his eyes.

"Leah? Jacob?"

"What the hell do you want Sam," Jacob groaned.

"Did you think I wouldn't find you out here eventually? Come back home, this is ridiculous," Sam ordered.

"What's ridiculous is you allowing those leeches to stay," Jacob growled.

"They are no longer a threat to our tribe Jake. You two need to come back home," Sam repeated. His gaze never left mine and I could see the glint of betrayal in his eyes. He was pissed off that I left his pack and joined Jacob's. Sam was power hungry, he hated when people found a way around his orders. He had been that way even before phasing.

"Breaking the treaty makes them a threat dumbass. They plan on changing Bella and that's called _breaking_ the treaty. Need I say more," I said.

"So what do you two plan on doing? Attacking the Cullens alone," he asked.

Jacob chuckled. "That's none of your business since I'm no longer a part of your pack. You came alone?"

"I hope you don't think I see you as a threat because I don't," Sam spat.

"You're such an asshole. Get out of here," I shot back.

"Do you realize how dangerous this could be? This could turn into a war and are you two willing to fight that alone," Sam asked.

"You're not gonna do it so why does it matter? Stay out of our business Uley and go back home. We'll come back when we want to but that doesn't mean we're joining your pack. I think it's time for me to step up and take my responsibilities by the reigns," Jacob replied, poking his chest out.

"We can't protect you…"

"We don't need your protection." Jacob's teeth clenched with each word. "I can protect her better than you ever did."

I stepped between the two Alphas. "I can actually take care of myself better than either of you. Now can you stop your pissing contest and go home?"

"See you later Jake. We both know that you won't be able to keep this up. And Leah…be careful." The rustling of leaves indicated that Sam had left us alone.

…**.**

It had been two weeks since we broke away from the pack and I was miserable. Eating raw meat on a daily basis wasn't very appetizing and I was in need of a home cooked meal. I missed my mother's cooking so much that I dreamed about eating meat loaf every night. When we slept in wolf form Jacob cussed me out because he was starving too. We knew we had to go home to eat a home cooked meal soon but of course we didn't want Sam thinking we couldn't survive without him. Jacob kept telling me that I could go back home at any time but I wasn't budging. He finally gave up last night when we got into a heated argument and it ended in us fighting. He could see that I wasn't returning to Sam's pack any time soon and dropped the subject.

I woke up to a snoring Jacob Black on top of me. I guess he called himself shielding me from the thunderstorm but I was still soaked. We slept in our human forms because we were driving each other insane with the crazy dreams we had every night. Jacob got to experience the dream about my unborn child and that did it for him. He wanted to sleep in human form from then on because the images tortured him. I caught him thinking about the dream several times when we patrolled the area. He would quickly think of something else but it was too late because I had already seen all I needed to see. One time he even thought of his own little ones running around the yard or bugging Billy. I saw a glimpse of myself in one of his thoughts but he abruptly phased out when I asked him what his thoughts meant. I wish there was a way to shut my thoughts and dreams off because I hated having Sam and Jacob know about the miscarriage. That was a precious secret that I wanted to keep to myself and I still regretted the day when I thought about the miscarriage with them in my head. I could feel the pity that Jacob felt for me once we separated from the pack. He treated me differently, with more care and caution. He treated me like I was fragile and could easily be broken with one hurtful thought. It was super annoying and I had approached him about it once just to be told that I needed to stop pushing people away. That resulted in another fight which ended with two bloody noses.

"Jacob get up," I whispered, pushing him off my back.

"I didn't stick my hand in the cookie jar this time," he mumbled with a smirk while he rubbed on my thigh.

"You nasty ass son of a bitch! Wake up, we're going to get food today remember," I shrieked, pushing him again.

His eyes finally popped open at the mention of food. Greedy bastard. "I totally forgot about that. You think your mom will be pissed about us coming to get food after you ran off without telling her?"

"I'm sure Seth let the cat out the bag by now. She'll understand and she can't say no to my puppy dog face. Let's go, my stomach is touching my back," I replied.

It didn't take us long to get to my house because we were both starving. Seth was sitting on the front porch twiddling his thumbs as we walked up.

"Leah! You're back! Mom, Leah's back," Seth yelled, wrapping me up in a bone crushing hug.

"Hey Seth! I missed you but we're not coming home. We're coming to get real food, eating raw is making my stomach turn," I replied and noticed Seth's face fall.

"Why can't you guys come home?"

"We have unfinished business to handle," Jacob answered.

"Is this the answer to all of our problems? Can you both sit down and think about what you're about to do," Seth asked.

It was my turn to convince Seth that we were making the right decision. "We've sat and thought enough and our answer is to end them before they cause more harm."

"This is gonna end badly, I can feel it in my bones. Sam isn't going to let you do this, I hope you know that."

"Sam can't keep us from doing anything. We're no longer a part of his pack and he doesn't have control over what we do," I replied. I hated to break the news to Seth this way, but he had to realize that Sam wasn't the great leader he thought he was. A good leader wouldn't allow a pack of wolves join us to find a vampire that they probably weren't hunting in the first place. A good leader wouldn't allow one of their packmates to bring a vampire lover to tribe meetings and bonfires. So far Jacob was doing a better job as leader, even though there was only two of us.

"Leah Clearwater get your ass in here," my mother yelled from the kitchen window. Jacob stifled a laugh as we walked into the house. "You two have had us going crazy! Are you out of your fucking minds!? You didn't leave a note, call, or even come by to explain a damn thing to me!" She turned her attention to Jacob. "Then you separate the packs without holding a meeting? I don't mind you accepting your Alpha role but geez… couldn't you have done it the right way? If you all were smaller I would throw you over my lap, but you got lucky. Now sit your asses down so you can eat a proper meal."

"Mom.."

"Sit down and shut up! I'm beyond pissed off and I don't want to hear your sorry excuses. I'll call Billy and Old Quil and we're having a meeting. I don't care if Mr. Jacob here decided to become Chief, we're having a meeting," she ordered. We followed her instructions as she finished breakfast.

…**.**

After breakfast, Sam's pack, Billy and Old Quil gathered in the living room. I knew coming home to simply get food would turn into a pack meeting. Maybe eating raw meat would have gotten better eventually.

"This was your wonderful idea," Jacob whispered.

"You agreed and you were hungry for cooked food too so shut your trap."

"Well we're going to go ahead and get started with all of this," Billy announced. "First I would like to say welcome back to our runaways."

"We're not coming home so we'll continue to be runaways," Jacob replied.

"Do you realize how dangerous it is for you to attack the Cullens ? I know Bella hurt you but that isn't a reason to kill them when they haven't broken the treaty or put anyone in danger," Old Quil said.

"They haven't broken the treaty yet but they will soon." I began. "And I think they've caused enough damage and put many people in danger because of their selfishness and love for that damn girl. Sorry if you all don't think the same but someone has to do something about them before things get worse."

"But it's dangerous Leah," Embry added.

"And them staying around here isn't dangerous? I'm sorry Embry but get your head out your ass and think. Sam has you guys brainwashed to think that these Cullens are actually people," I replied.

"I don't think they're people but they aren't a danger to us," Sam chimed in.

"How are they not when they are about to break the treaty," Jacob asked.

"You're still pining after Bella and that's the only reason why you want to kill them. I don't care for them but I'm thinking about our safety. Attacking them will only start a war that we don't need right now," Paul explained.

"Shut the fuck up Paul. No one asked you to jump in a conversation that was clearly between Leah, Sam and I," Jacob growled.

"Oh…so Leah's involved in this? Since when," Paul asked.

"None of your business Lahote. This is just why we shouldn't have come back," I exclaimed.

"You aren't attacking them," Sam replied.

"And who will stop us," Jacob asked.

"Jake please don't go through with this," Quil begged.

"It's for the best," Jacob said, looking at his best friend with an expression full of sorrow.

"No it's not," Quil said, shaking his head. Everyone's attention turned to the television when a breaking news alert flashed across the screen.

_Two families were slaughtered in their homes last night. The cause of death is unknown but they have teeth marks on various parts of their bodies. Police are still searching for the suspect. If you have any information about these murders please contact the Forks Police Department. _

…

**Anonymous POV**

George's death affected us in many ways. Not only was that Anthony's great-uncle, but he was the reason for our existence. He was the first to begin the marking that created our whole pack. It started with Anthony and then George's brother marked the rest of us. It was always tragic when an elder in our tribe passed away. It put a hole in our community and also shifted the dynamics of our pack. Once a person is marked and can phase, their life depends on the health of their creator. If the creator dies, then the people he marked die along with him. When George passed away last night, we could feel the connection with Anthony and Linda break. We could feel them dying and the feeling was horrible. When a packmate dies, we all get this unbearable burning sensation in our chests until they pass over to the other side. We all knew Anthony and Linda went to the evil side because of their recent behavior. Some of the pack didn't agree with Anthony, but we went along with it anyways because he was the Alpha.

"It's time. You know what to do," my mother said from her rocking chair.

I finished writing the letter, addressed it, and I planned to take it to the mailbox before finishing my deed.

"Yep. We're headed out now. I'm sorry things have to end this way but we knew this day would come soon."

Tears leaked from the corner of my mother's eyes. "It's time to start from scratch."

**This chapter was super hard to write. I've literally worked on it all week and nothing ever seemed right about it so I deleted it and started over. Hopefully I didn't confuse you all with the last piece. It will make more sense next chapter. I etched out the rest of the story and ended up with three more chapters. I thought I would have 5-6 more chapters left but I think I can squeeze the rest of the story into three chapters. I don't want to drag it on for too long and bore people. **

**Thank you for the reviews and support as always. You guys ROCK! I don't think I'll have a chapter of Dream Catcher up until next week because this chapter of Choices kicked my butt. Sorry. :(**


	16. Shades of Grey

**I don't own Twilight or the characters! They both belong to Stephanie Meyer. The song lyrics belong to Delilah. **

_**Through the darker shades of grey, I see beauty in the rain.**_

_**Gotta find myself, let me find myself.**_

**Leah's POV**

_Hello,_

_I'm truly sorry about all the damage my dad has done. He was always the one going after someone he knew he couldn't have. I'm glad you made it out safe and I wanted to let you know that I never had anything to do with his plans. I never wanted to hurt you or your family because I know how it is to see someone hurt…look at my mother. My dad only wanted more cubs and he thought you could produce the strongest ones. My mom told me about being your sister. Too bad she wasn't the nicest sister you met huh? _

_Just know that no one else from my pack will be bothering you. With Anthony and my mom dead I have a choice to make. Either I bite more people and create another pack or we take our own lives. Most of the time another pack is created but I don't think any of us deserve to live after what we participated in. Even though I don't know you, I feel like you didn't deserve the treatment you got from my family. I'm really sorry. _

_KY_

I sat the letter on the coffee table as the rest of the pack walked through the front door. It had been three days since we returned to La Push and rejoined the pack with new leaders. Since Jacob had accepted his Alpha position, Sam was automatically knocked down to Beta. He didn't put up too much of a fuss but he wasn't truly happy with the decision either. Paul was the only one freaking out because his ranking had dropped. The string of murders in Forks had slowed down and we were still searching for the source. We didn't need another newborn war and we had a few reasons why we thought that newborns were the cause of the murders. First of all the victims were all bitten on the neck. What normal person goes around biting people on the neck and killing them? Secondly, the murders occurred in a very close time period. They were happening too fast and there was no way a human could commit a slew of murders so quickly; unless they were working with other people. We called the Cullens several times but didn't get an answer. I had been in Jacob's head for two weeks and I could sense the apprehension to attack them. He would constantly go back and forth between wanting to kill them and then thinking it wasn't a good idea.

"They're gone," Jacob said as he read the letter from Anthony's son.

"What do you mean they're gone? Like gone for good," I asked and Jacob nodded. "They didn't say anything to you all about leaving did they," I asked the rest of the pack.

Sam was the first to explain. "We didn't hear anything from them after the wedding. All their furniture is gone too. They literally picked up and left with no word about where they're going or why they left."

"And Bella never said she wasn't coming back. He wasn't going to change her until they came back from the honeymoon," Jacob added. "Am I the only one who smells something fishy?"

"Nope that's my mom cooking dad's famous fish fry," Seth replied, earning a slap to the back of the head from Embry.

"Stop being such a little smartass Clearwater," Embry barked. "Maybe they're the suspects. You never know, good guys can turn bad. Right Sam?"

Sam growled. "What's in the letter Jake?"

"It's from Anthony's son. He was just apologizing and letting me know that we shouldn't be expecting anyone else from their pack. It's all still strange to me but I guess I'll live with it," I answered. "The remaining pack committed suicide. That's what I'm assuming from the letter."

"Wow, what a bunch of weirdos. I still can't believe you two actually killed people. Who woulda thought," Jared chimed in. The only things we usually killed were vampires. We had never even sunk our teeth into another wolf, let alone a human. It wasn't my intention to kill anyone; it had to be done in order to protect us and the tribe. I never trusted Anthony, although Sam wanted some kind of bromance with him, he reeked of trouble. The way he would look at me was my first clue and his stalking was the second clue. Anthony didn't appear to be an ally from the beginning which is where Sam took his downfall as a leader.

"It had to be done," Jacob said. "No one else was there to do it."

"Well you two decided to become runaways so whose fault is that," Jared asked. He was starting to be as annoying as Paul.

Jacob ignored Jared's last statement and began explaining what we needed to do about the recent murders in Forks. We need to figure out what we're going to do about these murders. It's been going on long enough and I don't want too many people dying because we aren't doing anything. Let's meet up later tonight at Sam's so we can discuss a new plan."

The pack nodded and left us alone in the living room. Jacob took a spot next to me on the couch and stuffed the letter back in its envelope. "You okay?"

"Why wouldn't I be," I replied.

He shrugged. "I don't know. We did kill someone and plus we're back home. I'm sure you aren't too happy about that right?"

"Doesn't really matter to me. I won't be around too much longer anyway, especially since your little girlfriend and Dracula's family ran off. Shouldn't be too hard to stop phasing."

"So you're going through with it after all? I thought you were pulling my leg," he groaned.

"Don't act like you'll be sad without me here. No more bitter happy to get on your nerves and you guys can go back to acting like frat boys," I joked.

My attempt at lightening the mood was a fail because Jacob was still looking like a sad puppy dog. "You think we don't care about you?"

My eyes squinted. "I wouldn't say you all don't care but….you have an odd way of showing it. I don't want to be your consolation prize and don't you dare tell me differently. You actually believe that what Old Quil said about us would be good? It's as bad as imprinting Jake."

"Speaking of Old Quil, he wants us to visit him later on. He has some things to tell us about and I'm sure it's about this whole Alpha pair thing," Jacob said. He stood to his feet and headed toward the kitchen. Why did the pack always feel the need to raid my fridge as though they didn't have anything to eat in their own? "And for the record, stop thinking the worst about us. Anthony has your head all fucked up." Too bad that wasn't convincing enough.

…**..**

Jacob opened the driver door so I could climb into the passenger side of the Rabbit. The raggedy piece of shit he called a car didn't even have a working passenger door. We rode in silence and after ten minutes we were pulling up to Old Quil's small home. He was sitting on the front porch in his rocking chair, awaiting our arrival. A small smile crept across his lips as we walked up to the porch.

"Hello there, take a seat," he said, pointing to two chairs on the other side of the porch. Jacob pulled my chair closer to his before taking a seat. "I wanted to talk to you two in private before having a meeting with the whole pack. You're aware of what I told Jacob right?" I nodded. "I found this book in my father's things. It kind of explains why you're the only female shape-shifter in history."

I placed the book in my lap after thumbing through a few pages. "I thought no one knew why I phased. Where's this information coming from all of a sudden?"

"I've read the book before but I never would have imagined you being the first. I always thought it would happen in the next generation and I believe your father thought the same. When you get the chance, read it and you'll understand your worth to our tribe and to this young man." Old Quil nodded his head toward Jacob. "To be with him would mean strengthening the tribe and creating stronger wolves for our future."

"I'm basically a prize to the pack? That's where this is going?"

"You're much more than a prize Leah. You are what keeps us balanced and keeps this kid's head on his shoulders. An Alpha pair isn't just about mating; it's about having a pair to keep the pack straight and in order. Sure one man can lead a pack on his own, just as Sam had done, but every man needs a strong female by his side to complete the puzzle. What's that song by James Brown where he's singing about a man's world?" Old Quil snaps his fingers as he tried to recall the name of the song.

"It's a man's world," Jacob said, raising a brow in confusion.

"What does James Brown have to do with us," I asked.

"Well James Brown made a valid point in his song. Although he claims it's a man's world, he says that a man would be nothing without a woman. An Alpha is nothing without an Alpha female by his side. Why do you think Sam's not as strong as Jacob? Why do you think Sam imprinted on Emily instead of you? He's not the true Alpha and you're too strong for him. You need to be with someone that has equal power to yours. You've been moping around La Push because of the Sam imprinting situation, but all along he's the weak link. You never needed him in the first place," Old Quil explained.

"But I need Jacob instead?"

He shook his head. "He needs you more than anything because men aren't very good at making decisions," Old Quil said with a chuckle.

"This sounds a lot like imprinting," Jacob interjected. "So we're basically stuck to each other forever?"

Old Quil shook his head again. "Wrong again young man. This is nothing like imprinting because unlike imprinting you have a choice. You aren't destined to be romantically linked if that's what you choose for yourselves. Unlike the other wolves, you two are stronger which is why you don't need an imprint to complete you. Your leadership is what the tribe needs; along with strong cubs if that's the direction you choose to take. I think I confused you when I mentioned making stronger wolves. Sure it would strengthen the tribe, but your leadership is what holds us together."

"So I don't have to have wolf cubs? You've got me all confused. First you say we have to strengthen the tribe now you're saying we don't," I replied.

"It's all about choice Leah. You choose what you think is best for the tribe. Our history never had an Alpha female in the past and we still have fairly strong wolves. It's just part of my theory that you two would create the strongest wolves we've ever had because of your bloodline. But it's all about the decisions you make and what you think is best for the tribe. If and when you decide to mark her is the most important decision you'll ever make Jacob. Once you've marked her, she's your mate for life. If you don't mark her, she's still your Alpha female because that's her natural ranking. Once she reads that book, she'll understand."

"Mark? Like marking his territory," I questioned. This was all too much to take in.

"Yes, marking you as his mate and that means you belong to no one else. But like I said, it's all about choice and decision. Regardless of what happens, you're Alpha female by default because you're the only female in this pack and you have all three bloodlines," he said.

"That's all? This whole thing is about her ability to keep my head on straight? That's it," Jacob asked. Was he seriously upset because Old Quil made our lives a lot easier with the news? I didn't have to be stuck with someone because of magic after all. I was free to leave without any strings attached to La Push. But Jacob was looking like someone had stolen his favorite blanket.

"It's your choice Jake. My work here is done," Old Quil said. "Nothing's promised."

"What does that mean," Jacob asked.

"My work here is done. Now if you two would get off my porch and go handle your pack. I'm going in here to fix me some good ol' grub. See you later." He began swinging his cane around and we hurried to our feet.

…

The pack took their seats as Jacob began the meeting. I noticed his voice had been getting deeper over the last few days and I guess that was the Alpha tone taking over because his voice was literally bouncing off the walls of the tiny living room. I could feel his voice vibrant through my whole body as he spoke. It was like someone was blasting music in a car and the beat could make your insides shake. He explained what Old Quil had told us about the Alpha pair and I thought Sam was going to come unglued but his anger subsided when he heard our leadership would make the pack stronger. I had to give it to Sam. He cared a lot about the tribe and whatever it took to keep it going strong. I wouldn't say he was jumping up and down about me ranking higher than him, but it was something he would eventually get over.

"When are you going to mark her Jake," Sam asked. The pack got silent and everyone's heads turned to face him.

"I'm not going to mark her. We've already decided that we won't be romantically involved," Jacob replied.

"Thank God, I can't imagine a pregnant Leah bossing us around. That's just scary," Embry added.

"You're turning down sex from the she-wolf? Are you crazy," Jared asked.

"Come on let's all be mature about this," Seth complained. "It's best that they don't mate. At least for my sake and mind."

"You're crazy for missing out on the wolf sex." Paul shook his head and faked a pout.

"Can you guys be mature for a change? This is serious business, stop screwing around. He's not marking me and we're not mating, end of story. It's our decision and that's that," I ordered. It felt good to boss Sam around for once.

"Okay so let me explain what's going to happen…" Jacob began but was suddenly stopped by the stench of vampires. "Outside now!" Everyone followed his order and rushed outside to phase. We didn't have to run far before we approached two familiar people… Edward Cullen and his red-eyed wife. She was covered in blood and it wasn't animal blood. That's when the answer to our question hit us like a ton of bricks. Bella Cullen was a newborn vampire that couldn't control her thirst. The Cullens had broken the treaty twice and this was their end.

**One more chapter left and then it's Epilogue time! This chapter wasn't very eventful, at least not to me, but I'm beginning to tie all the pieces together since it's ending soon. There isn't much left to explain so I'm sorry if this bored you. Next chapter should be more eventful. Thank you for your reviews of last chapter! **

**Some of you might not like my little theory on the Alpha pair, but it's my idea, at least for this story. I didn't want to torture Leah with imprinting then turn around and stick her to Jacob because of magic. That wouldn't be fair to take away her choices, right? **

**I'm taking an online class this summer so I haven't been able to do much writing. I got a little free time and that's how I got to type this chapter out. I missed writing so much, but this class is about Psychology of Sexual Behavior. Very interesting I must say, but it's a lot of work. I won't be posting a chapter to Dream Catcher until I'm done with Choices. I want a finished product before I devote my full attention to another story. But there is one chapter plus an epilogue left. You don't have to wait too long after all. **

**Thanks again! **


	17. Scared of Lonely

**Warning: This chapter is kind of busy! It's a wrap up of a few things so it will move around a lot. Some things will be saved for the Epilogue though. You've been warned.**

**I don't own Twilight or the characters! Stephanie Meyer owns it all! The lyrics belong to Beyonce. **

_**And I can't find my way, won't you lead me home**_

_**Cause I'm lost in this dream, I need you to hold me**_

**Leah's POV **

"_I think we've found our culprit," I thought. Bella crouched in a protective stance in front of Edward as he tried to reason with us. _

"_I'm trying to get her under control. She's trying," Edward explained, holding a snarling Bella in his arms. _

"_Now I know what everyone's been talking about. You all do stink," she spat. You don't smell too shabby yourself Cullen. _

"_Can we skip the small talk and kill them now," I asked. _

_We were fed each and every one of Jacob's thoughts and moments with Bella before she changed. It was like someone was quickly flipping through the pages of a book. He thought about the times he spent putting Bella back together after Edward left. He thought about the time she rejected him for the first time to save Edward from the Volturi. His thoughts then raced through the events that had happened recently. Their kiss on the mountain, the wedding and then the Cullen's disappearance. _

"_They broke the treaty; it's time to end them. Stop being such a pussy Jake," Paul growled. _

"_There's gotta be a way we can work through this. She's a newborn and it'll take time," Edward begged. I never took him as the begging type but of course Bella got whatever she wanted. Everyone had sacrificed a piece of themselves for this one girl who was selfish toward the people she said she cared about. Even people that weren't directly tied to her were affected. I didn't have a damn thing to do with the girl, yet her existence and foolish decision affected me. I blamed her for the Cullens staying, hence Sam phasing and imprinting. I blamed her for the newborn fight, for Victoria. This one plain girl who looked like she couldn't hurt a fly caused so much trouble. It was time for her to face the consequences. _

"_We've worked this out once before Edward. You know the rules yet you broke them. Why didn't you take her away if you knew she wasn't ready? You'd do anything to keep her happy, even if it means letting her slaughter the whole town. I'm done, this is over," Jacob thought. _

"_Jake," Bella whispered. _

"_I'm trying to teach her the right way. At least give me that," Edward replied. _

"_Can we kill him now," Paul growled again. "Enough small talk asshole."_

"_It's your decision to make Jake," Sam said. _

"_Please let it be to end them once and for all," I added. _

_Jacob's mind began to race again. This was probably one of the most important decisions he would ever make. It was his first major decision as Alpha of the pack. I could sense the nervousness building behind the anger but in the back of his mind he knew what he had to do. His main responsibility was to protect the tribe. _

"_Whatever you decide, we're behind you. We've got your back no matter what," Embry spoke. "Make your decision." _

_The rest of the Cullen clan quickly gathered around Edward and Bella. Great. _

"_We know we've broken the treaty but is there any kind of way we could make amends and move on. If you could spare her life…we'll move away forever," Carlisle asked. _

"_Is he fucking serious," Quil howled. "Jake make up your mind so we can kill these bastards." _

_Bella began to hiss as a human scent filled the air. I had forgotten about Emily being in the house. She had stepped out onto the front porch. "Sam," she gasped. There wasn't a way for us to communicate with her in wolf form so Sam growled and bucked his head toward the door. Bella's lips pulled over her teeth and before I could blink she was flying in the air towards Emily. _

"_No," Sam yelled as he took off after the rabid vampire .The rest of the pack was right behind him with the Cullens running to save their newest family member. Emily screamed as Bella landed on top of her. I could hear the crack of bones as Emily landed on the wooden porch. I wasn't too fond of my cousin but there was no way I was going to allow Bella Cullen to kill her. _

"_Kill them," Jacob croaked out as Sam's teeth sunk into Bella's ankle. _

_Carlisle Cullen was the first to go. He was an easy kill because he had nothing to fight for. They had broken the treaty and he knew their fate. Esme Cullen was the next one to go. Without her husband she was nothing. Paul carried her head in his mouth as he looked for his next victim. Jasper and Emmett appeared to be the only two putting up a fight. Rosalie just stood there as Embry and Jared tore her to pieces. I caught Jasper's hand in my mouth as he charged towards Jacob. _

"_I got'em Leah," Jacob yelled. "Watch out for Emmett behind you!" I heard another scream as Alice was torn apart by Seth and Quil. I didn't expect her to give in so easily. Jasper went limp under our grip as he watched her head roll into the grass. That was our cue to kill him because he was at his weakest. The Cullens weren't able to live without each other and that was obvious tonight. "Good work," Jacob said with a nod. _

"_You too," I replied. The remaining Cullens were being backed into a corner. Emmett, Edward, and Bella were the only ones left. They all had a different facial expressions that could be read like a book. Emmett was confused. He didn't know whether he should give in or fight. Edward was worried. He knew they had done wrong but he wanted to protect his mate. Bella was angry. She was a newborn vampire who couldn't control herself. Her main purpose was to kill. _

"_Spare her, take me," Edward said. _

"_Edward," Emmett exclaimed. _

"_It's over Emmett. We've broken the treaty. I surrender myself." _

"_No," Bella gasped. "Jake just listen to me…"_

"_Let's go in for the kill. No need to listen to her sappy speech," I spat. "I'll do it if you don't want to."_

"_Stay back Leah," Jacob said. _

"_Take me," Edward repeated. He turned to face the monster he created and held her face in his hands. "I love you and I'm sorry. I'm sorry." He kissed her lips and stepped forward. _

"_No Edward! Don't," Bella screamed as Jacob began tearing Edward apart. She pounced on his back and began crushing his ribs. _

"_You bitch," I screamed as I knocked her to the ground. _

_The rest of the pack ganged up on Emmett, who still put up a fight, while Jacob and I took on Bella. She fell to her knees and held her hands up to surrender. _

"_Wait," she yelled. Jacob stopped in his tracks. "I'm sorry Jake. I'm sorry for everything I put you through. Make it quick please." He didn't make it quick like she requested. His mind began to turn with memories as he stared at the girl in front of him. We stood there for a few moments and I was just waiting on my cue. I wanted to rip her to shreds. _

"_No."_

"_No what? I know you aren't thinking what I think you are. She's a murderer Jake!" _

"_It's something I have to do," he whimpered. One last memory of human Bella passed through his mind before he ended her. _

…_**.**_

Days after the attack, Jacob was still in his depressive state. I would have given him hell for it in the past, but I thought it would be cruel to tease a guy who just killed his best friend. That would have an effect on anybody, even a bitter harpy like myself. Jacob spent much of his time in the garage working on the Rabbit or motorcycles. He wasn't completely shutting everyone out but he didn't say many words if a person didn't spark the conversation with him first. I even tried to make him laugh but that ended in him getting frustrated instead.

He finally decided to talk to me on his own a whole week after the attack. He made me sit on a bench in the garage as he finished working on the Rabbit.

"I wanted to talk to you about something," Jacob said, breaking the awkward silence that had formed between us. "Take a look at this." He threw me a package labeled South Seattle Community College.

"What's this for," I asked.

"It's an application and I want you to fill it out. You wanted to leave La Push right?"

I thumbed through the pages and looked at pictures of the campus. "And you're assuming this is where I wanna go?"

Jacob sighed. "Well you want to get away and that school's about three hours away. Far enough?"

"Yea but…"

"Look Leah, it's always been your goal to go to school. You've been talking about it forever and I figure you can control your phasing enough to sit in a classroom. You've gotten a lot better and by the fall you'll be a pro at it. Get out of here, go to school and make a life for yourself." I tried to interject but he put a finger to my lips. "Don't make me order you away. I have a few other applications but I thought you would like that school because it's the furthest from here. Here, I even got you a pen." He dropped a pen in my lap and went back to working on his car.

…**.**

_Three weeks later_

After filling out a few applications and mailing them off, my mother decided it was time to talk to me and Seth about the Linda situation. She didn't want me going off to school wondering why she held that information in for so long. She was shocked to know that Linda turned out to be a crazy, backstabbing bitch and she felt guilty for not telling me about her sooner.

We poured ourselves a glass of lemonade and sat around the kitchen table.

"Can I start," Seth asked, taking a large gulp of his drink. Our mother nodded and Seth began. "Why did you hide that from us?"

She took a deep breath before answering. "I didn't want you two to see your father in a bad light." She glanced in my direction before looking back to Seth. "I know how angry your sister was when she found out he had been hiding the Sam and Emily thing from her. Adding this on top of that would have made her resent him. And you've always seen your father as the light in your world. I didn't want to crush that for you which is why I held it in so long."

"Did it hurt you," I asked.

"Oh did it ever. I cried for hours on end about it. I didn't want to believe it at first but then one day it slapped me right in the face. After that I wasn't able to deny it anymore and that's when I intended to tell you before you went snooping around in my room and found out yourself. Now I'm sorry I didn't even tell you because she turned out to be a psycho. Billy and Old Quil will never let me live that down," she explained.

"I'm only mad because you hid that from us. We could have helped you through that mom and you know it," Seth replied.

"I know and I'm sorry."

I smiled widely. "I guess we'll forgive you just don't let it happen again mom. Seriously, tell us when something that big is happening so we can get through it together. Plus it gives me a head up on whether someone is trying to impregnate me to strengthen their pack. We don't want that happening again."

"I'll make sure I spread the news next time but I don't think your father has anymore children. Let's hope not anyway. But moving on to a lighter note. How are those college apps coming along?"

"Well I have a few in the mail now and Jacob is going with me to mail my transcripts," I said.

"Aww how sweet! He's a really nice kid."

"Did I hear my name," Jacob asked as he barged through the back door.

"Yea I was telling my mom about the apps."

"It's really sweet that you're doing this for her Jake. Thank you," my mother said.

"It's no problem Mrs. Clearwater. You ready Lee?"

"I guess I am. I'll be back later mom," I said, placing a kiss on her cheek.

As Jacob shut the door behind us I heard Seth whisper, "He's good for her."

Our drive from the school and to the post office was silent. Jacob still wasn't talking much even though it had been weeks since the attack. When we were in wolf form his thoughts still revolved around_ that_ night. Killing Bella literally destroyed him. We all kept reminding him that we were there for him to lean on when he needed someone to talk to. I knew firsthand how it was to go through something so tragic alone. I didn't care for Bella and I hated the Cullens with a passion, but I knew it wasn't easy for him to see her as a monster.

"You doing okay today," I finally asked.

"Yep," he replied quickly.

"Lying isn't good Jake," I retorted.

"I'm not lying," he snapped.

"Sure, sure."

A tiny smirk formed on his lips. "But stealing my words isn't exactly a good thing either."

"I finally get more than five words out of you. We're making progress I see."

"As usual the mailman fucked up the mail and this ended up in our box," Jacob said, throwing an envelope in my lap. It was addressed to me from South Seattle Community College. "You gonna open it or do I have to do that too?"

I carefully ripped the letter open and unraveled it in my lap. "I got in," I gasped.

"Aw congrats. I knew you could do it. And that letter came in perfect timing by the way. I've been saving up money since I was a little boy. I made most of it fixing cars and bikes and some from cutting yards during the summer. Since I won't be going off to college any time soon…I want you to have it."

"Have what," I asked with wide eyes.

"The money Leah," he groaned.

"Are you fucking kidding me? I'm not taking money from you, that's yours to keep."

"I don't really need it right now. I was saving it up for something important …"

"And you need to keep it for whatever's important for you. I don't need your money Jake."

"Well you're important to me Leah and I'll feel a lot better if you took it. You'll need a place to stay while you're up there right? Use it for a down payment on an apartment," he replied.

"Nope. Not taking it," I pouted.

"We'll see."

…**.**

_Two Months Later _

And he was right. I did end up taking the money to put a down payment on an apartment I found close to campus. I was leaving for Seattle in the morning and my mom had the bright idea of throwing a going away bonfire. I wasn't too keen on celebrating welcome homes or going aways because people were always too emotional, especially my mother. She cried when I went away for summer camp for a week and my dad said she even stayed in bed a few days. Everyone was invited to come to the party, including Emily, who I still hadn't talked to after the slapping fiasco a few months ago. She and Sam were set to get married in 4 weeks. Of course I wasn't going to be a part of that celebration because I was going to school and it wasn't my intent to be at the wedding in the first place. Call me bitter but I couldn't sit and watch my cousin marry my ex-boyfriend. One day I would forgive them both but I had to admit that day wasn't anytime soon.

"The hotdogs are ready," my mother called out, resulting in all the wolves running each other over. "Whoa! One at a time."

"I can't believe you're leaving us," Rachel said sadly. "I just got back and now you're leaving me behind."

"I'll call. It's only for two years," I replied.

"We all know you're not coming back once you finish. I wouldn't if I were you. What's there to do here?" When she didn't get a reply from me she changed the subject. "So what's going on with you and my brother? You two have been hanging out a lot lately."

"He's been helping me with college apps."

"And you've been helping each other heal. He's getting better since you've been hanging out with him."

I sighed. "That's what friends do."

"Or a couple does."

"Rachel …"

"I'm just telling the truth and you know it. Speaking of relationships… did you notice something different about my hand," Rachel asked holding her left hand up.

"Oh my…you're engaged! Wow, congrats Rach, that's really great. So you went from thinking Paul was a duck to thinking he's husband material?"

"Hey I only thought that because of the whole imprinting thing. It's still weird as hell but he grew on me and something else is growing too." She raised her shirt to reveal a small bump.

"You're pregnant? Whoa when did all of this happen," I exclaimed.

"When he wasn't busy patrolling and handling wolf business. We got in a lot of quickies before he went on patrol in the mornings."

"Okay TMI."

The rest of the party consisted of everyone stuffing their face with food and me opening gifts. My mother brought me a photo album and the pack pitched in and purchased a digital camera for my new memories. The nights ended with us taking pictures and sharing memories of the past.

"Can't believe you're leaving us," Paul said. "Don't you forget where you came from or I'll remind you."

"Trust me, this tattoo on my arm with be a constant reminder."

"Oh and I got you these," Embry said, placing a box of condoms in my hand.

"What the hell do I need these for?"

"Wild college nights," Jared piped.

"She better not be having wild college nights," Jacob replied, throwing an arm around my shoulder.

"Well you two can use them then," Embry added. The group laughed as Jacob chased Embry down the shore.

"Make sure you keep in touch Lee," Sam said. Not like I would be keeping in touch with him specifically.

"And I forgot to give you this," Emily said. It was the first time she had spoken to me since the incident. She pulled a muffin recipe from her back pocket. I mentally rolled my eyes at the thought of baking muffins. It was so Emily.

"Um…thanks." Emily hesitantly threw her arms around my neck and whispered a quick _congrats _before pulling away.

…**.**

Today was the big day. Jacob, my mother and Seth were driving me to my new home in Seattle. I never was the type to cry over goodbyes but the feeling was bittersweet. I was happy to get away from La Push and start a life without magic, although I was still phasing, but I was sad to leave my childhood home behind. It was hard to admit it but I was scared. This was my first time away from La Push for a long period time. I would have to make new friends and find my way around the big city. The thought of it all was scary.

"I guess this is everything," I said, sitting the last box on the kitchen counter.

"Will you be okay unpacking everything," my mother asked for the tenth time.

"I'll be perfectly fine. I don't have that much right now anyway." I knew that was her way to buy more time with me.

"Okay," she replied as tears began to roll down her cheeks.

"Aw mom please don't start with the waterworks." I pulled her into a tight hug.

"I can't believe my baby's going off to school. I will miss you so much Leah," she cried.

"I'll miss you too."

"Call me and let me know you're okay. And be careful please," she warned.

"I will."

"Geez you're squeezing the life out of her," Seth laughed. My mother finally pulled away and Seth was next to give me a hug. "I love you sis. Take care."

"I love you too Seth!"

"We should probably get going before mom decides to move in with you," Seth said.

She slapped his arm. "Shut up Seth. Let's leave these two alone, I'm sure Jake wants to say bye in his own way. I love you."

"I love you too." I hugged her one more time before I was left alone with my Alpha a.k.a newfound friend.

"This is it. You're on your own after this."

"Yep," I replied.

"I'm so proud of you Lee. You've accomplished a lot even while going through all that crap back home. Look where you are now. Living your dreams and all."

"Thanks Jake…for everything."

"Sure, sure," he said with a smile. "Well I'll talk to you later."

"Later," I nodded. Was the room closing in or was I crazy?

"I have one more thing to give you," Jacob whispered as his lips got closer. His lips moved softly against mine. He pulled away before the kiss could deepen any further. "The choice is still yours." With that he walked out of my apartment.

**That's the last chapter of Choices! The Epilogue is next folks. I want to thank each and every one of you for sticking with me throughout this story. Your reviews and support meant a lot and helped me get through some dry spells. Thanks a bunches! **

**I didn't plan on killing the Cullens and Bella off until two weeks ago. I felt the story needed a different ending than what I planned on at first. I know some people may not agree with how the whole battle went down but that was just my interpretation on how the wolves would kill the Cullens. Carlisle just seemed too nice to fight back once he knew the treaty was broken. Once Carlisle dies the entire family falls apart since he's the head. **

**Oh and you'll find out what was in that book in the Epilogue too! **

**Thanks again for the support! **

**Love,**

**Bri**


	18. IMPORTANT

**I know we aren't supposed to post author's notes as chapters but I have to get something off my chest…**

**I've been on this site since 2009 and it's been a fun ride. I've met many great authors and read many great stories in the Twilight fandom. My writing has improved drastically from my first story on here and it's also helped me in terms of writing papers for school. **

**Here recently, the site hasn't been that much fun. While I have faithful readers that are so inspiring and I'm thankful for them, there are also people that seem to post negative things and I can't tell if it's supposed to be out of spite or not. I've seen several of these comments on other people's stories too and it makes me wonder if that's what this site is coming to. Like I said, there are more good people here than the negative but it's getting out of hand. When I have to deny some reviews because they are hateful and nasty, that's sad. It's one thing to give constructive criticism but to post something anonymously that's just disgusting isn't right. I know it's impossible to please everyone and that isn't my goal. I like to write because I enjoy doing it and I love to share my stories with others.**

**I intend to post the Epilogue of Choices by next week and after that I'm retiring from this site. Once I finish Dream Catcher I may think about posting the rest of it here because it's not fair to punish people that are enjoying the story. But I probably won't post another chapter until the story is complete. If you want to contact me or read anything new just join me on ** . **It's a cool site for Twilight wolfpack fans. You have to be 18 years old or older to join because of the mature content but it's worth it. There are a lot of writers from this site that are on there as well. I'm under the same name (YoGurlB- I have two accounts on there because I forgot the password to one. Just add the one that has a picture of Leah Clearwater as the avi because that's my new one) so I shouldn't be hard to find. Let me know you're there if you join so we can be friends! **

**I want to thank the people that supported me throughout the years or just joined in on my stories. You make me smile and your support didn't go unnoticed. Trust me, I see it and I appreciate it all. **

**I usually don't let things get to me easily but stuff is getting out of hand. After I've cooled off I may reconsider my decision. **

**Thanks again! **

**YoGurlB**


	19. I Feel it in my Bones-Epilogue

**I don't own Twilight or the characters! Stephanie Meyer owns it all! The song lyrics belong to Imagine Dragons**

**First off let me say thank you to all the supporters and readers. You guys rock! Thanks for sticking with this story through the long waits, my WTF moments and everything else. **

_**I'm waking up, I feel it in my bones**__**  
**__**Enough to make my system blow**__**  
**__**Welcome to the new age, to the new age**_

_**Two Years Later **_

"Leah Charlotte Clearwater," the dean called out as I walked across the stage. I was graduating with my Associate's in Psychology from North Seattle Community College. I transferred from South Seattle due to adjustment problems. I didn't think I would make it through at times because I got homesick often and I wasn't adjusting like I thought I would. Eventually I met some new people and they were my rock to lean on as I worked my way through school.

My family erupted in cheers as I walked across the stage and shook the dean's hand. He gave me a soft pat on the arm as he called the next name. I swear he had the hots for me because he's always touching me. Too bad I wasn't into the whole male cougar thing. Seth remained standing until I reached my seat. He had to be the loudest of the bunch and howl like an idiot. I could see my mother's hand connecting with the back of his head as I sat down.

"Congratulations Clearwater. We made it," the guy next to me said.

"Thanks, same to you."

"So about that date…." he began.

"I have a boyfriend and he gets really jealous." I smirked.

"I bet I could take him," he scoffed.

"He's a good 6'8 and he's really big. Turn around, he's actually not too far behind you," He turned around in his seat and made eye contact with the guy he thought he could take down. He smiled weakly and didn't say anything else for the rest of the ceremony.

…**..**

"Miss College Graduate," Jacob sung as he knocked on my door. I hopped to my feet and yanked the door open. "Hi," he said throwing me that 1000 watt smile.

"Hi." I wrapped my arms around his neck and gave him a quick peck on the lips.

"When did you become so modest," Jacob asked, pulling me in for another kiss. His tongue slipped between my teeth and we were interrupted by someone clearing their throat. "What the hell are you doing here Uley?"

"Just coming to drop Leah's gift off. Congrats," Sam said, glaring at Jacob who was smirking. He really knew how to get under his skin and it was hilarious.

"Okay wait just a sec." I held my finger up and pulled Jacob's lips to mine. Yep, I was tonguing Jacob down in front of Sam Uley. He kissed Emily in front of me right after he dumped me. Payback's a bitch and I'm her best friend. "Okay thanks." I snatched the gift from his hand. That was my way of giving Sam hell like I said I would when I first joined the pack.

"Yep," he replied curtly. He opened his mouth to say something but ended up turning his back and walking away. He would probably end up calling my mother complaining about my lack of manners. Here lately Sam had become the tribe snitch. Old Quil passed away a year ago and he was trying to take his spot. Every time Jacob made a decision that he didn't like, he would tell the Council. The Council didn't like getting involved in too many pack matters anymore since Jacob claimed his position as Alpha. They stepped back and let Jacob take full control of the pack that was rightfully his. Sam finally snapped and felt threatened by him; therefore he snitched every chance he got. It was very juvenile and I know that it also has a lot to do with Jacob being with me.

Over the course of two years Jacob and I built a strong bond. He came to visit me when he was on break from school and we talked on the phone every day. He listened to me while I complained about not fitting in and he encouraged me when I didn't do well on assignments. It was a relief having someone there to talk to when I couldn't talk to my mother or Seth. He finally earned my trust after many arguments and I decided to give us a go. It wasn't easy for me to give in because I still didn't trust this whole Alpha pair situation. I didn't want to be tied to someone like the imprints were; I wanted to be someone's choice. While I was away at college I read the book Old Quil gave me. It was interesting to know my reason for phasing and being the only female wolf thus far. Supposedly a female phases when a pack is in dire need of leadership. The book never explained how this information was found but it was someone's guess and apparently Old Quil thought it was a trusted source. But all of it made sense once I thought about it. Our pack was a mess and lacked leadership at the time I phased. Sam was just a stand in and his decision making wasn't the greatest because he didn't like to take advice from the Elders. He wanted to prove that he could lead on his own even though we were all fairly new to phasing. We were in a constant battle with vampires and Jacob was fooling around with a vampire lover. The tribe was on the brink of dying at the hands of leeches because we were protecting someone who didn't want to be protected.

Vampires were our natural born enemy; the book stated that any alliance with them wouldn't end well. With a pack on the verge of failing, a female phases to join the Alpha in leadership. It was their (whoever wrote this book) belief that the woman was the back bone of the tribe. Sure the male was the Alpha, but having a female by his side made him that much stronger. That strength came from the Third Wife, although she wasn't a wolf. So I guess I phased to get the pack in order, which clearly didn't happen right away. It took Jacob claiming his position to get the pack straightened out. I wasn't physically there to help him but he called me to get my opinion on certain things and I could appreciate him keeping me involved even though I was trying to stop phasing. I wasn't phasing as much but it was hard to stop due to my temper. Taking yoga classes didn't seem to help and with the stress of school I was unable to fully control my temper. Of course I never phased in front of people but I did have to leave class a couple of times when I felt the familiar waves travel through my body.

Jacob grabbed my hand and led me to the couch. "So what are you going to do now?"

I threw my legs over his and leaned back on the arm of the couch. "I was thinking about going to a four year school to finish out my last two years."

"Back to Seattle?"

"Most likely. What are you going to do now that you're finally done with high school," I asked. He lightly punched me in the arm.

"Remember we had all that pack shit to take care of. No time for school," he replied.

"I know, I was only kidding. At least you finished."

"I'm thinking about picking up a trade and maybe opening my own garage. That little old garage I'm working in now is getting too small."

"They have an automotive program at South Seattle. Look into it. You can go when I leave again in the fall," I offered.

His brows scrunched together in confusion. "You want me to come with you?"

"Sure, why not?"

"Well I guess we'll have more time to ourselves to do some baby making," Jacob laughed.

"Shut up. I don't know about the baby making part right now but I don't mind the sex part one bit," I replied, leaning forward to catch his bottom lip between my teeth.

"Ditto Clearwater. Ditto," Jacob growled before crushing his lips to mine.

…**..**

_**Three Years Later **_

Things slowly began falling into place. I felt like I was finally getting my life on track and for once I could say I was genuinely happy. Shortly after I returned to school in the fall, Jacob decided to attend South Seattle to pick up a trade in automotives. Sam had stopped phasing so Seth was next in line to take over as Alpha until Jacob went back home. Occasionally a few vampires ran through the area looking for a place to hunt. Paul and Jared were the next to marry after Sam. They planned to stop phasing soon in order to spend time with their growing families. Paul would probably have the hardest time since he was the most volatile. I only phased twice a week now and my goal was to stop completely in a year. I learned it wasn't easy to stop phasing on the spot and it took a lot control and patience to eventually stop.

Embry was dating a girl from Forks and Quil still thought he was a ladies' man. I didn't expect him to settle down anytime soon. He'll probably die a self-proclaimed ladies' man before settling down with anyone. My mother met a guy at a coffee shop in Port Angeles and they had been dating for six months. I was happy with her dating anybody but Charlie Swan. She quickly cut that off once I scolded her for breaking the golden rule of friendship. You were to never date the best friend of your husband, especially late husband.

"Take the test," Rachel urged, stuffing the box in my hand. She had come to Seattle to visit and to take a break from her three children, Victoria, Tyler and her husband.

"For the last time I'm not pregnant. I don't need to take the stupid test."

"Pleaaaaaaaaaase. I'll shut up if you do it. What's it gonna hurt?"

I snatched the test from her and closed the bathroom door. Five minutes later she opened the door with a grin on her face. "Do I have a niece or nephew on the way? Please say yes!"

"Nope. It's negative. You happy?"

"Darn, not really. I miss holding babies," Rachel pouted.

"Have another one of your own then silly. I'm not into having babies out of wedlock," I winked.

"Ohhhh burn," Rachel replied, slapping my arm.

"What the hell are you two doing," Jacob asked as he walked into the bedroom.

I knocked the pregnancy test on the bathroom floor as Rachel fled. "I'll leave you two to talk."

"What's this about," he asked, eyeing the test on the floor.

"Your stupid sister thought I was pregnant."

"Are you? Are you…pregnant? I mean I guess it's okay but I don't feel like we're…"

"Ugh not you too. It's negative, I'm not pregnant you butt munch," I exclaimed.

"Aww man… I mean that's good," Jacob sighed.

"Don't tell me you were wanting a little munchkin too."

"I was kind of hoping it was positive but we've got time," he replied, wrapping his arms around my waist. "As annoying as you are I hate to admit that I love you sometimes."

"But I'm less annoying than Paul, remember that. I love you too…sadly." And it felt good to love him by_** choice**_.

_**The End **_

**It was my plan to have this done by next week but I finished it early. I had some time on my hands today and thought why the hell not. **

**Some people complained about Jacob and Leah not being together in earlier chapters. It was always my plan to have them together by the epilogue because this story wasn't a romance story. I put it under the drama/angst category because I didn't want to make their relationship the whole plot of the story. My whole point of this story was to explore Leah's time in the pack from the beginning to the end. It was never explored in the books and I've always been curious about the pack's story. This was just my version of it. This story was about growth and being able to survive without choice (ie imprinting, phasing, etc.). In the end, Leah and Jacob were able to make the choice of pursuing a relationship without the magical force of imprinting. I know everyone won't like the ending and probably didn't enjoy the story. But I can't please everyone as I stated before. Thanks for all the love and support! I really appreciated it all! **

**Farewell…for now. **


End file.
